Sasuke Uchiha Gets Rejected!
by erinkateeboo
Summary: After returning to Konoha, Sasuke confesses his newly found feelings for Sakura, only to find out that she has fallen out of love, due to him never caring for her in the past. But Sasuke can't accept this! Through many mishaps, poor love advice from friends, and a stubborn will to never give up, will Sasuke win Sakura's heart back? Rated T for some language.
1. The Rejection

What was this feeling?

It was pleasant. Very, very pleasant. He had never felt anything like it before.

_Is this... love?_ Sasuke thought to himself, as he stared out the window of his home in Konoha. It had to be. Why else wouldn't he be able to get Sakura out of his mind?

She had been on his mind for a while, now. When he was with his team, which included Naruto and Sakura, he kept noticing things about her. Small things. Like her fair skin. Or the way her pink hair fell into her green eyes. The way she walked was strong, yet graceful, all at the same time. The way she talked, laughed, said his name. The more embarrassing thing about all this, though, was that Sasuke was nearly unable to take his eyes off of her whenever they were together.

It had been too long. Too long, he had waited, feeling his love for Sakura bloom. If he didn't act, she would be swept off her feet by another man. He couldn't let that happen.

**xXx**

After having this dreadful thought, Sasuke suddenly found himself outside of Sakura's door, determined to be her first and only suitor.

_Okay, _he thought to himself. _You've got this. Just go in there and tell her how you feel. She's always loved you, right? So she would never reject you. There's no WAY she could do that. You've got this, Sasuke. You've got this._ As soon as his mental pep talk was over, he took a deep breath and knocked on the door. "Sakura?" he called. "It's me, Sasuke."

Right after he said his name, Sakura opened the door. She looked warm and happy to see him. "Hey, Sasuke," she said. opening the door wider. "What's up?"

"Sakura, I have to talk to you about something." He didn't even smile back at her.

"Oh?" Sakura said questioningly. _What's up with Sasuke? Is something the matter?_ "Please, come in," she said, stepping aside for him.

"Thank you." Sasuke stepped inside the small house.

"Have a seat, Sasuke. Can I get you anything?" Sakura said politely.

"It's okay, this will only take a second," Sasuke said, sitting down in a comfy armchair. Sakura sat across from him on the couch, her green eyes fixated on him. She sure was beautiful.

"What's going on?" Sakura asked. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Sasuke gulped, starting to get nervous. She just looked so damn PRETTY. And she was just so perfect.

_Remember, Sasuke. There's no way she would reject you_, he mentally reminded himself.

"Look, Sakura," Sasuke said, folding his hands together. "I know that over the past few years, I've made some serious mistakes..."

(Now. Let's take this moment to agree that Sasuke Uchiha has been a pretty huge douchebag throughout the majority of the anime/manga. Serious mistakes? What kind of an understatement is that?!)

"But I'm back now. I'm back because of Naruto, and Kakashi, and everyone here. But most importantly, I'm back because of you."

Sakura furrowed her brow. "What are you saying, Sasuke?" she said very quietly.

"I'm saying that... that I love you," Sasuke blurted out. "I love you, Sakura. I want to be yours forever."

Sakura's eyes widened, and she drew in a sharp gasp. "S-Sasuke...?"

"I really do care about you," Sasuke continued. "I haven't shown it in the past because I had too much hate in my heart. But that hate is gone, now. Now, I just have love for you." Sasuke closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Sakura... would you-"

"No." Sakura's voice was flat.

Sasuke felt as though he had just been struck by lightning at that one, simple word. "What?" he stupidly asked.

Sakura drew in a deep breath, and looked away from his face. "Look, Sasuke," she said. "I'm impressed by the way you've turned your life around. And it's good to finally have you as a friend. You're wonderful." Sakura looked back at him. "But I loved you. I loved you for _years_ and you never even looked at me once!"

Sasuke was completely caught off guard by her unexpected response. "But Sakura," he said, pleading now. "I'm different now. I was just so full of anger that I-"

"Sasuke, just stop," Sakura said calmly. She closed her eyes. "I spent years worrying about you and loving you and waiting for you to come back to me. But you never did. Eventually, I got over you. And although I wanted you back here, it doesn't mean that I loved you this entire time. You hurt me, Sasuke."

Once again, a feeling like he had been struck by an electric bolt of lightning.

"I'm free, Sasuke. Free from you. You can't hurt me anymore, and I won't let you. And I understand that you were never ready for that kind of relationship, but I'm not going to let you hurt me ever again the way you did."

There was silence between them as their eyes made contact. It lasted almost too long.

"I don't want to hurt you," Sasuke said quietly.

Sakura sighed. "I'm sorry. But it's too late."

_What's going on? It wasn't supposed to turn out like _this! Sasuke was frantic. What could he possibly say to change her mind?

"Thanks for stopping by, anyways. "Sakura was now standing up from her chair. "Anything else I can do for you?"

_No no NO! It can't go down like this!_ Hoping against hope that this was a dream, or some messed-up genjutsu, Sasuke stood up. He had to do something, and quick!

"There's one thing," Sasuke said. In an instant, he was right in front of Sakura, standing too close for her comfort.

Shocked by Sasuke's sudden advancement toward her, Sakura took a step back and stumbled back onto the couch. "Sasuke, what are you-"

"I'll do anything to have you, Sakura," Sasuke said, taking her face in his hands. "Anything." Then, he was leaning towards her, his eyes closing...

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Sakura suddenly screamed. At this, Sasuke let out a startled yelp and jumped back, stunned.

"SAKURA WHAT THE HELL!" he cried out.

The pinkette was now standing, a look of rage and fury filling her eyes. "DAMMIT SASUKE!" she yelled. "I SAID NO!"

Sasuke was speechless. What had gotten into her?

"You can't just try to kiss me after I rejected you!" she shrieked, her voice shrill. "I. SAID. NO." Quickly, she tried to compose herself, standing up straight and pointing towards the door. "Now LEAVE MY HOUSE. NOW. Or I'll have to STRIKE you out of here!"

Sasuke stood in one place, dumbfounded, before reluctantly dragging his feet to the door. "Sakura, I'm sorry," he said. He stood at the door, waiting for a reply. However, Sakura didn't even turn to face him. She still stood there, her back facing the Uchiha.

And so, feeling like an utter failure, Sasuke walked back outside into the evening air. The disappointment he felt was strong. Was that really Sakura? She wouldn't have rejected him like that.

But, then again, he had been gone for quite some time. Things were bound to change...

But could Sasuke give up just yet?

The answer to that question is no. He would keep trying to win her heart. Eventually, she had to give in... right?

He would just have to try harder. And he wouldn't stop until he had Sakura's heart again.


	2. A Rough Night

**Hello, readers! So, before you read, I just wanted to say something really quick:**

**This story takes place between chapters 699-700 in the manga. HOWEVER. You should know that I've read some sporadic chapters in the manga (the ones with reanimated Itachi, and the last two chapters), but I haven't read the whole manga... So, I'm really sorry if there are any inconsistencies. I just want you all to know that, just in case ;)**

**Okay! Now you can go right ahead and read away :)**

That night, Sasuke found himself unable to sleep. He lay in his bed, tossing and turning, unable to forget Sakura's harsh rejection.

Hours passed, and the young man lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. He didn't even blink. After several hours, Sasuke stood and began slowly pacing the floor of his bedroom. He couldn't hold still any longer. The clock on his wall read 3:25, but he could care less. He didn't care about ANYTHING. All that mattered in the entire freaking world was the fact that Sakura SHOT him. Right in the HEART.

Metaphorically speaking, that is.

Sasuke was madly pacing now, walking about his room and running his fingers through his hair with mad frustration.

"She wasn't _supposed_ to say that," he began muttering to himself, over and over again. He was starting to look like he belonged in an insane asylum. Finally, Sasuke somewhat came to his senses and stopped in the middle of the room, loudly talking to himself. "Why? Why did she turn me down like that? I'm a changed man, aren't I? Have I not changed enough? Am I not as good-looking as I used to be? It's my hair, isn't it?!"

Suddenly, Sasuke was struck with a sick, horrible realization.

"Oh, God," he said, raising his new, artificial hand to his brow. "There's someone else, isn't there?! Oh shit! Ohhh, SHIT!" Sasuke grabbed the sides of his head, taking handfuls of hair in his hands. Who? Who had Sakura fallen for while he was rogue? _Who could it possibly be?! _Sweat was dewing up on the Uchiha's forehead and trickling down his face.

What a drama queen...

Suddenly, Sasuke uttered one, hushed word to himself.

"Naruto."

It had to be him. He had loved her since they were young, too. And he had always been there for her, always by her side. Plus, the ladies couldn't _resist_ him, now that he was a grown, handsome, and amazing shinobi. Who else could she be in love with besides him?

Sasuke felt utterly betrayed by his best friend. How could he do this to him? _HOW?!_

"NarutoooOOOO!" Sasuke's somewhat composed demeanor snapped, and he began to yell like a madman. "YOU FILTHY TRAITOR!" Without thinking much, Sasuke ran down his stairs, threw on a long, black cloak to cover his jammy-jams (they had puppies on them), and ran furiously out into the darkness. He HAD to get some answers!

**xXx**

"Naruto! Open this door!" Sasuke yelled, banging on his best friend's apartment door. "Don't make me break in there, because I will! Mark my words! I am seriously PISSED and-"

Sasuke suddenly heard the door to the right of Naruto's open, and there stood a tired, grumpy-looking man with untidy, brown hair. "Hey, kid!" he yelled in Sasuke's face. "It's almost four in the morning! People are trying to sleep!"

"This is important!" Sasuke rudely insisted, motioning to Naruto's door.

"It can wait, or you can shut the hell up about it!" the man yelled.

Sasuke let out an angry growl. "Chidori!" he impulsively yelled. Bolts of lightning struck up his arm, crackling with electricity.

"Oh, so THAT'S how you wanna pla-"

And then Sasuke hit him in the stomach.

The man flew back into his apartment and hit the far wall. Sliding to the floor, he let out a miserable groan.

Normally, since Sasuke had turned his life around, he wouldn't do something so extreme. But in THIS case, he was in a foul mood, and it was early in the morning, AND he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. Plus, he was fairly new to this whole "good guy" thing.

"You're fine," Sasuke grumbled, reaching out and shutting the man's door for him.

Suddenly, Naruto's door opened, and there stood a sleepy-eyed Naruto, rubbing his eyes. "W-what happened? Sasuke, what's wro-"

Naruto couldn't finish his sentence. Sasuke grabbed his sleeve and dragged him forcefully back into his apartment. Slamming the door before Naruto could react, Sasuke looked into his eyes, challenging him. "It's you, isn't it?" he said without any explanation. His eyes were bloodshot, and one of his eyelids twitched furiously without stopping.

Naruto cocked his head to the side in puzzlement. "What's me?" he asked, confused and sleepy.

"Sakura. She's in love with you, isn't she? She accepted your confession, but not mine."

Naruto's eyes widened and he stared at his friend. "Sasuke, are you being serious? You confessed to Sakura?"

"Don't beat around the bush!" Sasuke insisted. He slammed his hand into Naruto's chest, shoving him hard against the wall. "Answer my question!" he yelled right in Naruto's face.

"I never confessed to Sakura, you jerk!" Naruto was now riled up by Sasuke's rude behavior. He smacked the Uchiha's hand off of his chest. "We're not in love! This is the first time I'm hearing about this!"

"Hm," Sasuke scoffed, closing his eyes. "You're a liar."

"Well, you're being an idiot! And I'm not lying!" Naruto argued back.

"If you don't tell the truth," Sasuke said, raising his hand threateningly, "I'll Chidori you like I did to the man next door!"

Naruto's mouth fell open. "You mean you would hurt Ken? Come on, Sasuke, Ken's a sweet guy. You know better."

"I didn't come here to get scolded," Sasuke briskly said, ignoring the fact that Naruto had used the word "sweet" to describe his grouchy neighbor. "I came here to get answers from you, Naruto."

Naruto groaned loudly. "Ugh. Look, Sasuke, Sakura and I AREN'T IN LOVE. She even told me I was like her brother once! Now _that_ would be gross if she was dating her own brother."

Sasuke sighed. That was one of those things only Naruto would say...

"Besides, I've moved on," Naruto said, his blue eyes brightening. "I think I'm in love with someone else."

Sasuke didn't even think to ask who. He was filled with too much relief to care just yet.

"But you confessed to her, and she turned you down?!" Naruto said, getting excited.

"Tch," Sasuke scoffed, closing his eyes and turning his head away. "I don't think it's any of your business.

"Yes it is too! I'm your best friend, so I have a right to know!"

Sasuke rubbed his hand over his face. "Fine. Yes, she turned me down. She said I had hurt her too much in the past."

It was silent as Sasuke remembered the terrible evening.

"Sasuke..." Naruto said quiet and comfortingly. He placed his hand on the Uchiha's shoulder.

Sasuke smiled up at his friend, waiting for his condolences. What are friends for, after all?

And then, Naruto's big mouth opened.

"You know, you really do deserve it. I mean, she did everything for your sake for years and you just kept turning her down and ignoring her. Seriously, what did you expect? Did you really think she would just forgive you that easily? It's not like she was just going to forget all the torture you put her through. If you think about it-"

"That's ENOUGH, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled angrily, interrupting Naruto's lecture. "Dammit," he muttered, nudging Naruto's hand off of his shoulder. "What can I do to show her I'm sorry? That I really do care?"

Naruto scratched his head thoughtfully. "Well, Sakura says I'm dense... whatever that means... but that's not going to stop me from trying to help you! Why _do_ you like her? Why _do_ you want to be with her?"

Sasuke thought for a moment. "Well, she's perfect. And just an amazing person. But I doubt me telling her that would do much."

"Hm..." Naruto said thoughtfully. "Are there any other reasons?"

"Well..." Sasuke said. "I would like to have my clan repopulated as quickly as possible. And I suppose that I want her to be the one to help me reproduce." He looked up at Naruto expectantly, waiting for him to say something. "I can't do it myself, you know," Sasuke said, as though Naruto had no clue that men couldn't asexually reproduce.

"Well..." Naruto squinted his eyes and scratched his head. "Did you tell her that?"

Sasuke thought a moment. "Well... no, I haven't," he said. "Do you think she'll want me if I tell her?"

Naruto flashed Sasuke a big, toothy grin. "Sure! They say you're supposed to be honest, right? If you say that to her, then you're being honest about how you feel!"

Poor fools... neither of them knew anything about love.

Unfortunately, because he knew nothing about love, Sasuke listened. "Okay," he said, perking up. "I... I think I'll tell her! In the afternoon!"

"Yeah, that's the spirit!" The blond fist-pumped. "She won't be able to resist you!"

And with that, Sasuke left, feeling a new wave of confidence. When he got home, he was able to get some rest, having some serious delusions that everything would be okay the next day after he talked to his love.

**Ah, poor Sasuke... Let me know what you think, and I'll have the next chapter up ASAP- thanks for reading :)**


	3. When Life Gives You Lemons

**Hello, readers!**

**Wow! I keep getting emails that this story keeps getting favorited, alerted, and reviewed. I'm so happy that it's a success so far, and I just want to thank everyone who is reading. I also have to apologize for not updating for several days- I'm trying to make school a bit more of a priority.**

**You all should know before reading this in its entirety that I have a very strange, random sense of humor. So you'll probably be reading this and going "wtf?! where did she get that?" I do that exact thing while I'm writing :) Just so you're aware of my weirdness!**

*****Also, when I underline things, it's a flashback :)**

**But anyways, thanks for reading- enjoy this chapter!**

Sakura Haruno walked through the marketplace with a brown paper bag full of groceries. At a stand full of apples, she stopped to speak to the old woman selling them, a warm smile on her face.

And hiding behind a nearby stand was none other than Sasuke Uchiha, watching like the creepiest stalker.

He was crouched behind a crate full of tomatoes, which happened to be his favorite food. But he was so focused on watching Sakura's every move that he didn't even notice.

"Hey, son," the tomato salesman finally said. He had noticed Sasuke, crouching behind his tomatoes, but had the mentality of "if I ignore it, it'll go away." However, since this weirdo obviously wasn't going anywhere, he had no choice but to speak up. "I think you're scaring away my customers.

Sasuke momentarily snapped out of his trance. Sure enough, while all the other stalls were bustling with customers, they left a wide perimeter around the tomato stand. A tumbleweed blew past them in the empty street.

And then Sasuke noticed the tomatoes.

"But why is no one here?" he asked in terrible amazement. "I mean, you're selling tomatoes!"

The salesman sighed and shook his head. "If you're not going anywhere, why don't you buy some?" he asked, his voice monotone.

"In a moment." Sasuke waved his hand, back to staring at Sakura. She was beginning to get closer. "I have something I must do."

Again, the salesman sighed. "Teenagers..." He muttered.

"I am an adult, thank you," Sasuke said, not taking his eyes off of his target. He ignored the salesman's angry muttering as Sakura got closer and closer. At last, she was approaching the tomato stand.

"Good afternoon, young lady!" The salesman said jovially. "Here you'll find the finest tomatoes in Konoha!"

"I don't doubt it," Sakura said, with a smile. She cradled her groceries in one arm and reached out her other to grab a tomato. Just as she was inspecting it, Sasuke jumped up from his hiding spot.

"Sakura."

The girl nearly had a heart-attack. "OH!" Sakura yelped, dropping the tomato back into its crate. Her groceries nearly tumbled out of her bag, but she quickly stabilized them with her other hand. "Sasuke! I didn't see you there! Where did you come from?"

"It doesn't matter," Sasuke said. "I think we have some things to talk about."

Sakura's mouth twisted into a frown. "I suppose we do," she sullenly agreed.

Sasuke walked out from behind the tomatoes and looked at Sakura. "Come with me for a moment."

Sakura shifted the groceries she carried. Then she looked over her shoulder at the tomato salesman. "I'll be back," she said before following Sasuke to a nearby bench, out if earshot.

Sakura sat down, setting her groceries beside her on the bench. Sasuke just stood over her, staring creepily into her eyes and not saying a word. The girl shifted her eyes around uncomfortably for a moment, waiting for Sasuke to say something, as he had been the one to drag her off. However, he didn't say a thing- just stared quietly at her. So, after several long and uncomfortable seconds, Sakura spoke up. "Look, Sasuke," she said, looking at him with her big, green eyes. "I know I was a bit harsh yesterday, and I'm sorry. But you can't just try to kiss me like that. Especially after I didn't accept your confession."

With that said, Sasuke made a mental note that girls don't like kisses.

"I want you to know that I really value our friendship. Can we just move past everything that happened yesterday?" She asked genuinely.

Sasuke nervously scratched the back of his head. "Well, Sakura," he started. "I don't think I was being entirely honest with you."

Sakura tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"I have something to say that I didn't say yesterday," the Uchiha said. "I think if I say it now, it may change the way you feel."

Sakura shook her head. "Sasuke, don't make me do this again," she started.

"Please, Sakura. Just hear me out," Sasuke pleaded.

Sakura looked up at Sasuke. He looked desperate, as though this were the most important thing to him in the world. "Well... alright, then," she said with a nod.

The Uchiha took a deep breath, then began to talk. "You know that it has long been a goal of mine to restore my clan," Sasuke said. "And to be honest, I want you to be the one to have my children."

Sakura flinched as though she had been hit in the stomach. "W-what?!" she snapped, caught off guard by what her teammate had said.

Unfortunately, Sasuke didnt seem to realize the effect of his words and continued. "Think about it- you're young, and probably very fertile. You can probably pop one, two, maybe even more out for every time we make love. I'm sure that we could populate an entire village on our own, if we wanted."

Sakura said nothing. She was looking at the ground, shaking with contained rage. What was this imbecile saying?!

"I can't do it myself, you know," Sasuke said like he had said to Naruto. "That's why I want you to reproduce with me, and for me."

That did it.

With a mighty shriek of fury, Sakura stood from the bench. "IS THAT ALL YOU SEE ME AS?!" she screamed in a livid frenzy. "YOU JUST WANT ME AS YOUR SEX SLAVE?!"

Startled by the unexpected reaction, Sasuke jumped back away from her. What had he done? Had he said something wrong?! "I-I'm being honest with you," he stuttered.

"So that's a yes?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"I guess...?"

And with that, Sakura raised her fist and slammed it hard into Sasuke's jaw.

The Uchiha took off through the air and slammed into a crate of lemons. The wooden crate snapped, and the lemons tumbled down onto his head and body.

"Ouch," Sasuke muttered, rubbing his jaw.

Everyone in the market was staring. Some people where ooh-ing, others were snorting with silent laughter. "MY LEMONS!" cried the saleswoman in despair. And she ran off, practically sobbing.

Sasuke's head felt jumbled and confused. Before he could collect his thoughts, Sakura was standing in front if him again, a terrifyingly livid expression on her face. "Sasuke Uchiha, you just ruined ANY chance of us being together!" she hollered.

"ANY chance?!" Sasuke sat up a little straighter, as his heart sunk, his eyes like a sad puppy dog.

Sakura didn't care. "Not that there ever WERE any chances," she snapped.

"Whoo!" cried a man's voice. "Way to pummel him, Sakura!"

Both of them turned towards the source of the voice. It was Naruto's neighbor whom Sasuke had attacked, Ken. "Thanks, Ken!" Sakura said, waving good-naturedly.

"YOU!" Sasuke hissed, glaring daggers up at Ken.

"Don't say you didn't deserve it, after you attacked me!" Ken was now standing next to Sakura, looking angrily down at the young man sitting in a pile of lemons. At Ken's words, Sakura's mouth fell open in shock. But before she could say anything, he patted her on the shoulder. "Have a nice day, little lady," he said before leaving them.

Sakura turned to Sasuke, staring at him in disbelief. "You attacked Ken?!" She demanded.

Sasuke began to stutter, trying to get himself out of the hole that he was in. Unfortunately, that hole nearly reached the very core of the earth. "I- well, I-"

"How could you, Sasuke? Ken is a really sweet guy, I don't know why you'd want to hurt him.

Wtf? Sakura thought he was sweet too?!

"Ugh. Sasuke, just... leave me alone. Please." And with that, Sakura walked away, leaving him in the street with nothing but lemons to comfort him.

The lemons didn't do much.

Sasuke just sat among the fruits, completely unmotivated to even move. He stared at the stone path blankly, lost in his sorrow.

Until he heard a familiar voice.

"So then I went to Ichiraku's, but they were closed! It was the worst day of my life!" Naruto's happy voice pleasantly rung out among the murmur of voices in the crowd. "Huh? Sasuke?" Naruto suddenly said. He was standing over Sasuke, inspecting the situation his friend was in. "Whaddya doing with all these lemons?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Sasuke droned, still not looking up at Naruto.

"Y'know, when life gives you lemons-"

"I hate lemons, and I hate lemonade, so NO!" Sasuke suddenly snapped. He jumped up, a lemon in his hand, and he chucked it angrily in the street. "Why don't YOU make lemonade? There's plenty to go around!" Now, Sasuke turned to glare at his friend. Only to see that he was with none other than Hinata Hyuuga.

"Oh, hey Hinata." he calmly said. As if it were the most normal thing to do, he reached out and patted her on the head, his face as serious as ever.

Hinata, who was completely weirded out, but too nice to say so, simply said "O-oh, hi Sasuke..." She blushed.

"What the-" Naruto started.

Sasuke interrupted. "Naruto, I need your help. Excuse us, Hinata."

"No problem," she shyly said before Sasuke dragged Naruto away.

When they were away, Naruto looked questioningly as Sasuke. "Okay, first things first- why did you just pat Hinata on the head?"

Sasuke blinked. "Isn't that a universal sign of friendship? Between a man and woman?"

Naruto stared at him blankly. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"It lets them know that you're not interested in mating with them, but you want them to be your friend," Sasuke said, clearly convinced that he was correct.

"Who told you THAT?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke arrived at Orochimaru's lair for the first time.

The snake-like man was in a labratory, writing furiously on a roll of parchment, when Kabuto walked in, Sasuke close behind.

"Orochimaru," Kabuto said, delicately pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "It looks like Sasuke Uchiha is interested in being your new subordinate."

At the sound of Sasuke's name, Orochimaru looked up. His lips curled into a sinister smile. "Sasuke Uchiha," he drawled, standing up from his desk. "How pleasant it is to see you."

Sasuke stared boredly at his new sensei, who was making his way over to Sasuke. As he came to stand in front of Sasuke, he said, "I knew you'd come and find me eventually." Then, he patted the boy on his head of jet black hair.

Sasuke flinched away at the touch. "Why did you just do that?" he asked, brushing a hand over his spiky hair to fix it.

Orochimaru stared blankly at Sasuke for a moment. "Well..." why _had _he done it? "It's... It's a universal sign of friendship," he said, thinking this up as he spoke. "Usually, it's done between a man and a woman to show that they're not interested in mating, but they really want to be friends... yeah."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow suspiciously. "You know I'm not a woman, right?" he said..

"Of course, Sasuke. There is no one manlier than you," Orochimaru replied, much to Sasuke's discomfort .

"Please never say that again," Sasuke said flatly.

"Oh, alright... Just for the purposes of this situation, I guess. I patted you on the head just to show you that we're comrades now."

"Hm," Sasuke said. "I'm not interested in making friends, but thanks."

Orochimaru stared down at Sasuke. _He believed me? Wow. Perhaps this child will believe anything I tell him..._ Orochimaru smiled evilly again. _This could be fun..._

"Whatever, it doesn't matter," Naruto said before Sasuke could tell him the story. "What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"I talked to Sakura," he said. "I told her about wanting to restore my clan with her."

Naruto's face brightened. "And?"

Sasuke slumped. "She turned me down. It was even worse than last time."

Naruto's mouth fell open. "Wooowww," he said in disbelief. "You must have REALLY hurt her feelings way back when, huh?"

"Naruto, please!" Sasuke snapped. "I thought telling her would make her want me, but it has done nothing. It may have even ruined our friendship. What do I do now?"

"Hold your horses, Sasuke," Naruto said, taking his friend's shoulders. "I'll try and think of something, but I'm busy right now." His blue eyes flashed over to where Hinata was standing. He blushed a bright shade of pink as he flamboyantly waved his fingers toward her. She blushed and shyly waved back, an adorable smile on her face.

Sasuke's eyes shifted suspiciously from Naruto to Hinata.

Naruto, Hinata.

Naruto, Hinata.

"Hang on," he said, finally catching on. "Is Hinata the one you're in love with, Naruto?"

Naruto let out a gleeful chuckle. "It's pretty great, huh? If you can ever get Sakura to like you, then we can all go get ramen together!"

Sasuke frowned. "Congratulations, Naruto," he said. He wanted desperately to be happy for his friend, but in this moment, all he felt was jealousy and sorrow. How had Naruto gotten the girl of his dreams so easily? And why wasn't he getting anywhere with Sakura?

Naruto giggled. "Gee, thanks! Just be patient, buddy! I'm here to help you out." Naruto began to walk away from Sasuke, back towards Hinata. "See ya later!"

Sasuke weakly waved at the couple as they started back down the road, lost in their own world of twitterpated happiness. A world he SO BADLY wanted to be in with Sakura.

Since there was nothing else he could do right now, Sasuke dragged his feet back to the tomato salesman, hanging his head to the ground like a failure.

"Well," said the man, putting his hands on his hips. "You drove away many of my customers today. But I suppose you got what you deserved, since that young lady completely owned you."

Sasuke didn't say anything. He didn't even look at the man. All he did was reach into his pocket, pull out his money pouch, and hand it to the man.

Confused, the man opened up the pouch and looked inside. Then, he drew in a sharp breath. "Th-this... this is..." his eyes were wide as he stared in awe at the contents in the pouch.

The salesman didn't complain when Sasuke conjured up several clones to pick up the tomato crates. Every last one of them helped Sasuke drag the tomatoes to Sasuke's house. And when he got inside, Sasuke promptly sat on the ground and began to stuff his face.

Tomatoes = Sasuke's comfort food.

**So, Ninjashooter, you guessed the pairings correctly :) I hope you all liked this chapter decently- thanks for reading!**


	4. Too Many Tomatoes

**Hi everyone,**

**I don't think I have anything really important to say, so go right ahead and start reading :)**

**Thank you!**

Sakura knocked on the door of Ino and Sai's home.

_Hopefully they aren't still in honeymoon mode,_ she thought as she waited. The two had just returned the previous day from their almost month-long honeymoon, and Sakura wasn't sure if it were too soon for visitors.

But, she HAD to talk to Ino.

Lucky for her, the door opened, and there stood Sai. He looked very happy to see her.

"Sakura," he said with a bright smile.

"Sai! It's good to see you again," Sakura said,stepping inside the house, shutting the door, and giving him a side hug. She was glad that Sai was more in touch with his emotions now- he was a whole lot more friendly, less awkward, and only called her a hag when he was playfully teasing her. And Sakura had learned how to take a joke a little better.

Just then, Ino appeared at the door beside her new husband. "Sakura!" she said happily. She hugged her best friend tightly.

Ever since the two girls had given up their mutual feelings for Sasuke Uchiha, they had bonded closer than they ever had before. Especially over several afternoons of tea, shopping, and making fun of Sasuke's hair.

"I'm so happy you guys are back," Sakura said, beaming at the newlyweds. "Is it too soon for visitors?"

"Hell no," Ino said. "I just spent an entire month with no one but this weirdo." She nodded in Sai's direction. "I'm ready for some actual human contact."

"Hey!" Sai whined. "I'm your husband! I thought you liked being with me!"

"I'm just kidding!" Ino laughed with a wink.

Sakura giggled. _It must be such a great feeling to be married to the one you love,_ she thought to herself. _They sure are lucky to have such a relationship._ "Ino, I came here because I have something I have to talk to you about," Sakura said, growing serious.

"Hm?" Ino looked very interested. "What is it?"

Sakura's eyes flashed to Sai. "Well... it's kind of 'girl talk,'" she hinted.

Sai just stood there and listened, as oblivious as ever.

Ino cleared her throat loudly. "Oh, _GIRL TALK._ So you mean, _NO GUYS ALLOWED?_" She enunciated each word clearly, her eyes flickering to her husband.

Sai just stood there and smiled. He didn't seem to be taking the hint.

"Oh for heaven's sake!" Ino finally snapped. "Sai, upstairs! Sakura and I have some things to discuss!"

Sai's face fell. "But... But..." he weakly protested.

"You can hang out with us when we're done! Go upstairs!" Ino demanded.

Sai's shoulders slumped. "Fine," he grumbled,

"Sorry, Sai!" Sakura called as he dragged his feet up the stairs. When they heard the bedroom door shut, Ino and Sakura sat on the couch downstairs.

"So," Ino said. "What's up? Is everything alright?"

Sakura sighed. "You'll never believe what Sasuke said to me today," she said, rubbing her temples with her fingers.

Ino's eyes widened. "What? What did he say?" she asked eagerly.

"Well, first of all," Sakura said, "he confessed to me yesterday."

Ino stared at her in shock. "No way..." she breathed. "That is crazy! What did you say?!"

"Well, I turned him down, obviously," Sakura said.

"Good," Ino said. "That Sasuke doesn't deserve you."

Sakura smiled weakly. "His confession is nothing compared to what he said to me today," she said.

"What did he say?" Ino asked.

And Sakura told Ino the whole, strange story of her escapade at the marketplace.

Ino stared at Sakura, her mouth and eyes wide open in amazement. Then, she exploded. "ARE YOU KIDDING?!" the blonde cried. "DOES HE HAVE NO RESPECT FOR WOMEN?!"

"Apparently not," Sakura sighed.

"Good thing you gave him what he deserved," Ino said, flipping her hair. "Hopefully he's learned his lesson."

Sakura nodded her head. "I'm just really upset about this whole thing," she said glumly. "I mean, I really was happy when he came back, because I looked forward to getting to know him as a friend. But... apparently he still doesn't care enough for me to even want that. It seems like all he wants is... well, to put it bluntly, sex." She pursed her lips.

The two women were silent for a while as they both thought about this.

Suddenly, Ino bristled. "Sai!" she yelled. "Stop being nosy! I know you're there!"

Sure enough, when the two friends looked at the top of the stairs, Sai was peeking out at them from behind the wall. "Dammit," he growled, sneaking back into the bedroom.

When Sai was gone, Ino spoke up again. "What about Naruto?" she asked in a hushed tone. "Do you still...?"

Sakura's lips twisted into a weak smile. "Yeah," she said, not looking at her friend.

"How does he feel?" Ino gently prompted.

Sakura's eyes were downcast as she spoke. "You should hear the way he talks about Hinata," she said. "Plus, she's always been there for him, has always been patient with him. She deserves him more than I ever will."

"Does he know how you feel?" Ino asked.

Sakura just shook her head. "He never will," she said. "I don't want to ruin what I already have with him. Besides, I'm just happy that he's happy. And I'm happy for Hinata. She's loved him forever."

Ino sighed. "You know, I'll bet if you never told him that he was like your brother, he would consider you," she said matter-of-factly.

"I know that!" Sakura said defensively, glaring at her friend. Then, her expression saddened again. "Like I said, I just want him to be happy. And I'm sure that I can never make him happy the way Hinata does."

"This whole thing is a mess, isn't it?" Ino said. "Add Sasuke into the equation, and it's an absolute catastrophe."

Sakura groaned. "Please, don't remind me of that imbecile," she droned, rubbing her hands over her face.

Ino giggled. "This will all be over someday," she said kindly. "Just hold on."

Sakura smiled up at Ino. "Thank you," she said softly.

**xXx**

It was well into the evening, and the sky was beginning to darken.

But who would be out after an entire day of training, still giving it his all?

None other than Rock Lee.

The young taijutsu fighter was walking on his hands down the street, yelling something about youthfulness, when he suddenly heard a weak, pained groan.

At the sound, Rock Lee jumped back onto his feet. "What was that?" he asked himself, alert and ready to attack whatever may jump out at him.

Suddenly, there was another groan. Lee whipped his head in the direction of the groan.

It was coming from Sasuke Uchiha's home.

Without hesitation, Lee rushed to Sasuke's porch and began rapping on the door. "Sasuke Uchiha!" he called dutifully. "It is I! Rock Lee! Please let me in so that I may offer my assistance!"

There was no reply.

So, naturally, Lee opened the door and invited himself inside, only to see the young man, lying on the ground.

Sasuke looked terrible. His face was pale and clammy, and his breathing was heavy. Lee's round eyes examined the situation, and they landed upon a large, wooden crate with five tomatoes inside.

Sasuke was also holding a tomato in his hand. He hadn't noticed Rock Lee, as his tummy ached fiercely. But that didn't stop him from lifting the tomato weakly to his mouth.

In one swift motion, Lee was crouched at the Uchiha's side. "Sasuke, do not eat that!" Lee snatched the tomato out of Sasuke's hand. "You have clearly eaten too much already!"

Sasuke winced and clutched his tummy. "Give it back," he muttered, almost inaudibly.

"I will not," Lee said. Sasuke weakly tried to take the tomato back, but Lee held it out of his reach. "Too much of a good thing can be a very terrible thing. A very terrible thing, indeed."

Sasuke sighed, He tried to sit himself up, but ended up making his tummy cramp even more. He grabbed his stomach and curled up onto the floor, trying to hold back his groans of pain.

"Allow me to help you, Sasuke," Lee said. He placed his hands underneath the Uchiha's shoulders, lifted him into a sitting position, and propped him up against the wall.

"Thanks," Sasuke slurred, his eyes half-open.

"Sasuke," Rock Lee said, ignoring Sasuke's thanks. "Why would you do such a thing to yourself?"

Sasuke feebly wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I don't want to talk about it," he said, his voice shaky.

Just then, Lee noticed a large, purple bruise at the base of Sasuke's jaw on the left side of his face. "Sasuke, what has happened to your jaw?" he inquired, reaching out and lightly poking the bruise.

Even though Lee barely touched the bruise, Sasuke felt a searing pain shoot through his jaw. "Ow!" he exclaimed. When he yelled out, he felt a pang in his stomach, and hugged it tightly with his arms.

"Please do not be angry, but I saw everything that happened at the market with you and Sakura," Lee finally admitted.

For a moment, Sasuke froze. _Dammit! This is humiliating!_ He glowered dangerously up at the thick-eyebrowed man. "Why are you bringing his up?" he said with strain.

"Because I want to know if that has anything to do with the situation you are in," Lee stated.

Sasuke sighed and ran a hand down his sweat-covered face. "I don't want to talk about it," he said for the second time.

"Sasuke, if I may," Lee said. "I have some advice I would like to share with you."

Cringing, Sasuke sat up a bit straighter against the wall. "What do you know about it?" he said accusingly. "You've never had a girlfriend."

Lee ignored Sasuke's rudeness. "I promise, Sasuke. You will not be sorry if you listen to my advice."

"Well... I suppose I have nothing to lose," he said reluctantly.

And so, Lee began. "The art of courting requires seduction," he said. "There are many ways to seduce a woman, but here is the way that works the absolute best."

Although his tummy was still in fierce pain, Sasuke listened intently as Rock Lee shared his advice.

"You must sneak into her house without her knowing," Lee continued. "Go into her bedroom, and find where her underwear is stored."

Thinking of Sakura's underwear made Sasuke perk up even more. "Go on," Sasuke prompted, very interested already.

"You must take all of it," he said. "Every last pair."

"Every last pair?" Sasuke asked.

"Every last pair," Lee confirmed. "After that, you must hide them in your bedroom and leave her a suggestive note of where she can find her panties. She will make her way up to your bedroom to take them back. And when she enters, she will see you on your bed, surrounded by all her underwear. It also helps to have a rose in your teeth to give her."

When Lee was done speaking, Sasuke looked at him questioningly. "That seems weird," he said bluntly. "You... you really think that'll work?" he challenged.

"I do not doubt it," Lee said with a firm nod.

Sasuke sighed. "One other thing..." he said. "I said something, and Sakura got really mad at me. Should I tell her I'm sorry?"

"No!" Lee said, almost too quickly. "Do not do that! That will just make things worse!"

"But I think she may want an apology," Sasuke said, feeling confused. "And I am sorry, even though I really don't know what I said that was so terrible..."

"She will get angrier if you bring it up again. It is best to simply leave it alone!" Lee insisted.

Sasuke paused. staring up at Rock Lee's face. He seemed very convincing, but Sasuke still wasn't sure he trusted this advice. "Are you sure you aren't lying?" Sasuke asked suspiciously. "Last I checked, you also had feelings for Sakura."

Lee abruptly stood, positioning himself in a fighting stance. "I shall focus on my training," he said, throwing a punch in the air, "with absolutely no distractions!"

Sasuke nodded his head. "Somehow, I believe you." All of a sudden, Sasuke remembered something; Sakura had set her groceries on a bench, then had walked away without them. "She forgot her groceries," Sasuke exclaimed, forgetting his tummy pain for a moment.

Lee's eyes flashed down to the pathetic Sasuke. "What did you say?" he inquired.

Sasuke ignored him. "Lee, help me up," he demanded.

Without question, Lee leaned down and practically lifted Sasuke off the ground. Sasuke almost cried out from the pain that shot through his stomach, but bit his lip to stay silent. "Thank you for your advice," Sasuke said. "I have to go now."

Lee bowed deeply to Sasuke. "Anything for my comrade," he said. "Please take it easy, my friend." And with that, Lee bounded back outside to continue training.

Luckily, when Sasuke painstakingly made his way back to the marketplace, by some miracle, Sakura's groceries were still placed in the exact same spot on the bench, untouched. So he took them and made his way to his teammate's home.

**xXx**

After talking with Ino, and then having a meal with her and Sai, Sakura made her way back to her home.

Only to see the last person she wanted to talk to.

Sasuke was standing, leaning against the wall of her house, holding a familiar brown paper bag full of groceries. Much to her satisfaction, she could see a huge, dark bruise where she had punched him.

"What do you want?" she demanded.

Sasuke held out the bag. "You forgot this," he said. She noticed that he was shaking, and he talked as though he had just run a marathon.

"Thanks," she said shortly, snatching the bag out of his hands. He wiped the sweat from his face. He looked paler than usual, and his eyes were glazed over with pain.

Sakura was now starting to feel a bit concerned. "Is everything okay?" she asked worriedly.

"Everything is fine," Sasuke said unconvincingly. "Why?"

Sakura furrowed her brows. "You really don't look so well," she replied.

"I'm... I'm just great." Sasuke winced. "I just wanted to make sure you didn't forget your groceries. I would hate for you to starve."

Sakura stared suspiciously at him. "Well, thank you," she said slowly, "but that doesn't make up for the way you acted today."

Sasuke looked sadly down at his love._ Okay. Remember, don't apologize._ "I'm going home now," he said mournfully, turning to leave.

But Sakura placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Sasuke stopped, feeling his cheeks growing hot at her touch. His heart began to pound hard inside his chest.

"Come inside, Sasuke," Sakura said, her voice comforting. "Maybe I can help you." Was she still pissed at him? Sure. Had she wanted an apology? Hell yes- in fact, she _expected_ Sakura was a kind person, and she couldn't just let Sasuke suffer without at least trying to help him, even if he _had_ acted like a total dick.

Sasuke gulped nervously. "Okay," he said, his voice wobbly.

Sakura gave him a tight-lipped smile as she slid open her door and lead Sasuke inside by the hand, causing Sasuke to blush an even redder shade. She set her groceries on the floor next to the door, then put her arm around Sasuke and helped him to the couch. He flopped over onto it, clearly in a lot of pain.

"My goodness," Sakura said, clucking her tongue. "What happened? You seemed just fine earlier."

Sasuke hesitated, embarrassed about the whole situation. But, he figured that as she was a medic, she may be able to help him feel better. So he uttered a one-word explanation: "Tomatoes."

Sakura stared at him, a puzzled expression on her face. "Were they spoiled?" she asked.

Sasuke shook his head. "Too many," he said.

"How many would you say you had?" Sakura asked.

Sasuke thought for a moment. "I lost count," he said. "But... maybe seventy. Or more."

Sakura's jaw would have hit the floor, had it been physically capable of doing so. "What?! Sasuke, you have to be exaggerating!"

"Well, give or take," he said, trying not to get even more embarrassed by Sakura's reaction. "I bought all the tomatoes in the market."

"WHAT?!" Sakura screeched. "Sasuke, of COURSE that's going to make you sick! You can't eat too many!"

Sasuke frowned, but didn't say anything.

"Ugh," Sakura rolled her eyes. "You should have been resting in the first place. You shouldn't be leaving your house and roaming around while you're sick." She made her way into the kitchen, shaking her head with disapproval. When she returned, she was holding a bottle of pills and a glass of water.

"Here," she said, shoving the water into Sasuke's hand. The young man forced himself to sit up as she opened the pill bottle and shook two of the small white pills into her hand. "Take these painkillers. This is about all I can do for you," she said, placing them into Sasuke's other hand.

"Thank you," Sasuke said. He threw the pills into his mouth and swallowed them with a gulp of water.

Without another word to Sasuke, Sakura left the room again. When she returned, she was carrying a large quilt.

"Lay down," she commanded, pointing at the couch. Sasuke obeyed. "You can stay the night if you want," she said curtly. "I don't want you up and about while you're feeling ill." She unfolded the quilt and draped it over Sasuke's body.

"You're very kind, Sakura," Sasuke said. "Thank you."

Sakura furrowed her brow. _Honestly, I feel like I'm taking care of a two-year-old,_ she thought disapprovingly to herself. "Get better quickly," she said to Sasuke. Then, she turned off the lights, drew the curtains, and left the room.

Sasuke snuggled into his blanket and listened to Sakura's footsteps, moving down the hall. He heard a door open and shut.

_She must be in her room,_ Sasuke thought to himself as he stared into the darkness. Longingly, he imagined being there with her, snuggling up to her and falling asleep in her arms. How amazing that would feel.

But simply being in the same place as her would have to do. Smiling to himself, Sasuke drifted off into a deep, peaceful slumber. Maybe today hadn't been a complete failure after all.

And he was sure that things would advance further once he actually did what Rock Lee told him to do.

**I know that I'm the one doing this and all, but oh, how I cringe for Sasuke.**

**Also, Hanmac: I completely agree! I actually don't mind SasuSaku, but I felt like Sasuke had to get a taste of his own medicine. Karma is a bitch! He can't get everything he wants too easily after all he's done, am I right? ;D**

**I hope this chapter wasn't too terribly boring :) Thanks for reading!**


	5. The Intervention

**Here's the next chapter! I'm sorry for taking a while to update, but I was on Spring Break and had places to go and people to see :) Just one month of school left... thank goodness. I'm ready for longer break! College is stressful -.-**

**Anyways, here it is. Enjoy!**

When Sakura awoke the next morning, she made her way, barefoot down the hall in her pajamas, only to see that Sasuke was still asleep on the couch.

_I have to admit it... he looks SO CUTE!_ Sasuke was bundled up under the large quilt she had given him, nothing but his head poking through. Running back to her room like a child going to steal candy, Sakura grabbed her camera. She ran back down the hall, her eyes filled with crazy, and snapped a creepy stalker picture before heading into the kitchen to start on breakfast. Sadly, she always had quite a weakness for Sasuke's attractive looks. Only when he wasn't being a complete jerkface, though.

As Sakura opened the fridge and began taking out a carton of eggs, she thought about her past and the love she had once had for Sasuke. _I can't believe that I had to practically get slapped in the face by the boys and TenTen to come to my senses, _she thought, shaking her head as the memory flooded back into her mind.

It was after Sasuke had returned to the village and turned over a new leaf. He was gone, having his own journey of self-discovery, and intended to return to Konoha and remain loyal to his comrades for the remainder of his life.

He had been gone for about a full year. Not surprisingly, Sakura's feelings for Sasuke were still as strong as ever. She waited earnestly for the day that he might return, so that the two could finally get to know one another. As a couple.

In LOVE.

However, Ino seemed to have the exact same idea.

Every time they would get with their friends, as long as they were in the same room, they would practically rip each other's throats out in their continuous battle for Sasuke's heart.

Their last fight over Sasuke's was by far the worst.

Sakura, Ino, Kiba, Shikamaru, and TenTen had all been volunteering at the Academy for the day. The kids were practicing sparring, and the five Jonin were giving the children advice to improve their technique.

Sakura was sparring with a boy with glasses, when she overheard Ino, talking to the boy she was sparring with.

"You know, you remind me of my fiancee. That means you're going to be an excellent shinobi if you keep working hard."

This got Sakura's attention. Starting to feel anger boiling inside of her, she stormed over to where Ino stood. "So, who is this fiancee of yours?" she demanded.

Ino looked her dead in the eye. "Sasuke Uchiha," she stated. "Don't you know?"

Sakura's heart beat hard and fast with fury. "And how do you know that?!" she growled.

"Well, let's see." Ino put a finger to her chin and looked up, as though she were thinking about this. "I'm prettier than you. Sasuke's too hot to be with someone as average-looking as you. He can't just go around dating someone with a giant forehead. Even if you have that fancy mark." With that, she flicked Sakura's diamond with her long, sharp fingernail.

That sent Sakura over the edge. She raised her hand and slapped Ino as hard as she could across the cheek.

"SAKURA!" Ino screeched, lunging at Sakura. She pounced onto the pinkette, scratching and smacking her while screaming, "SASUKE IS MINE!"

"HE ISN'T AN OBJECT!" Sakura screamed. She reached up, grabbed Ino's ponytail, and tugged. Ino cried out in pain as she was pulled to the ground. Sakura kneeled on her stomach to keep her from getting up, and yanked on the blonde's long hair, over and over again.

The kids began screaming in horror as they watched the ladies practically kill each other. Sakura pulled out several strands of Ino's hair. But she was so crazed with hatred and anger, that she didn't even care as tears ran down her face.

"Stop!" Ino cried.

"You started it, piggy!"

"Sakura, stop!" Kiba sprinted up to Sakura. He grabbed her upper arm to pull her off of Ino, but then the crazy pinkette spun and pummeled him with her fist of iron. He flew through the air and crashed into a nearby tree, hard. Twigs and leaves fell all around him.

Although it hurt, Kiba didn't have time to wallow in his pain. He jumped up, wincing slightly. "Someone get the Hokage!" he yelled.

A small girl ran off in the direction of Tsunade's office.

Kiba started back over to where his friends were, but then...

"Shadow Possession Jutsu," said a calm, bored voice.

Sakura and Ino both froze, mid fight. Ino was still lying on the ground beneath Sakura's knees, and Sakura still had her hands wrapped around the mess of blonde hair.

"Sh-Shikamaru!" Ino cried.

"Save it," he said. "I can't believe I'm using chakra for _this_. What a drag."

Suddenly, the little girl came running back, Tsunade on her heels. When the Hokage saw her two students, she let out a low growl and stormed over to them. When she approached them, Shikamaru let go of his shadow possession jutsu, and before Sakura could scramble off of Ino, she was backhanded by her very angry sensei.

"AH!" she screamed as she stumbled back onto her behind. "Tsunade!" she yelled, rubbing her stinging face. She felt blood trickle down from her forehead to her cheek, from one of Ino's scratches.

Upon seeing Sakura get smacked by Tsunade, Ino let out a sinister snicker.

"I'll slap you too!" Tsunade threatened, jabbing her finger furiously at Ino. The girl quickly stopped laughing. "Both of you, stand up!"

They immediately did as they were told.

"Dammit," Tsunade grumbled, facepalming. "I can't _believe_ I was dragged out of my office for something as stupid as this. This has gone far enough! You two have _got_ to stop this war you have over Sasuke!"

"Lady Hokage, you don't understand-" Ino protested.

"I don't care!" Tsunade barked. "You two are acting like thirteen year old girls! This isn't going to matter in the long run." The older woman took a deep, calming breath. "Now," she said, more quietly. "No more volunteering at the Academy. You guys are free to go. But no more fighting!"

And with that, she stormed off.

"Nice going, you two," Kiba said from behind them.

"SHUT UP!" they screamed in unison.

**xXx**

The next day, after a trip to the barber's, Sakura arrived home to find a note on her door. It read:

_Sakura,_

_We're all going to the cemetery to visit Neji's grave at noon. You better be there!_

_-Kiba_

"Of course I'll be there," she murmured to herself. Running inside to check the time, she saw that it was ten minutes to noon.

"Ah! I better hurry!" Quickly, Sakura snatched the sunflowers that she kept on her kitchen table out of their vase, tied them together with crimson hair ribbon that the barber had tied into her hair, and fled out the door.

She rushed down to the streets, hoping to get there before she was too late.

"Sakura!"

The pink-haired woman stopped abruptly at the sound of her name. It was Kiba's voice, and it was coming from inside a small cafe to her left. The door was cracked open, and Kiba's head was poking timidly through.

"Kiba?" Sakura said in puzzlement. "Come on! We have to hurry and get there! We can't keep everyone waiting for us."

"Just come here for a bit," Kiba said.

By the sound of his voice, her friend wasn't planning on taking no for an answer. "Okay, but let's make it quick!" She jogged over to the cafe door, clutching the flowers in her hand. When she was at the door, Kiba stepped aside to let her in, then shut the door.

Sakura saw a sight she was not expecting.

The entire cafe was completely cleared of tables, chairs, and customers, besides three others and Akamaru, who was snoozing in the far corner. On the right side of the room, Shikamaru and TenTen sat cross-legged upon green cushions, and there was an empty cushion between them. They were facing the other side of the wall, where a very grumpy-looking Ino sat upon her own cushion, folding her arms tightly across her chest. She also had a bouquet of purple flowers, sitting in her lap. Upon Sakura's entrance, the Yamanaka glowered moodily up at her.

"W-what is this?" Sakura asked, her jade eyes flickering between the two separate parties.

"This, Sakura," Kiba said, grabbing her shoulders from behind, "is an intervention." After he said this, he began forcefully guiding her over to where Ino sat, deaf to her screams and protests. Then, he pushed down on her shoulders. forcing her to the ground next to Ino.

The tension in the air between the two females was palpable. Sakura sat stiffly, scooting a tiny bit further away from the girl next to her. Hesitantly, she sneaked a side glance at her, only for their eyes to meet. The moment they did, both of them whipped their heads away, their noses in the air, with a loud "hmph!"

"Let's not start things this way," Shikamaru drawled in his usual lazy voice. "I came all the way here when I could be relaxing because _you_ two can't get along."

"Why does it matter if we get along or not?" Ino snapped loudly, causing Sakura to flinch. "Our relationship is none of your business!"

"Ugh. I hate to say it, but I agree with her," Sakura complained, running a hand through her pink hair in frustration.

"Well, then, our intervention is already working!" Kiba was now seated in between TenTen and Shikamaru on the once-empty cushion, Akamaru still dozing off in the corner. "And it concerns us why?" The brown-haired boy leaned forward, getting in their face as much as he could. "Because it's annoying!"

"Eh?" Sakura and Ino said at the same time.

"Yeah, you heard me!" Kiba continued, now riled up and speaking with passion as though he were preaching a sermon. "Every time we hang out and you guys are together, all it is is 'fight, fight fight!' We get together to have a good time, not to kill each other! Besides, there are plenty more men in Konoha who are available."

"Exactly," Shikamaru started. It was as though they had every word planned. "Sakura, Ino. Tell us something- what _do_ you like about Sasuke? Ino, you start."

Ino didn't waste a second. She clasped her hands together, her eyes squinting into a broad smile, and started rambling. "He's soooo handsome! Oh, his skin is like porcelain, and his hair is as black and as sleek as a raven! And those eyes, they're so cold and dark which just makes him even cooler! KYAAAAH!"

Shikamaru stared at his teammate and sweatdropped. "Okay then," he said, disregarding all of what Ino had said. "What about you Sakura?"

Sakura smiled. "His face is the most handsome I've ever seen. And he's tall, and has a..." she was now blushing, clearly embarrassed. "a really attractive body."

Simultaneously, a trail of blood dripped from the three intervening shinobi's noses.

"Okay, so you've told us what you like about Sasuke," Shikamaru said, trying to stay cool as he wiped the blood from his philtrum with his thumb. "But what about his personality? Neither of you said anything about his personality."

"He's the cool, quiet type!" Ino gushed.

"Listen, ladies," Shikamaru said, holding a hand up in Ino's direction. "I really want you to consider my next question seriously."

Both of the girls leaned forward, listening carefullly.

"What has Sasuke ever done for either of you?"

Shikamaru scrutinized the ladies across from him. Both of them were completely silent, hardly even breathing. "Ino? What do you say?" he asked, focusing his attention on the blonde.

Ino stared at her best friend, a purely stunned look on her face. "Well..." she started, nervously twiddling her fingers. She had to tear her gaze away from Shikamaru's hard stare. "I... I..." Ino hung her head, her voice dropping to a low volume.

"That's enough, Ino," Shikamaru said boredly. Now, he was gazing expectantly at his second victim. "Sakura? What about you?"

Sakura didn't know what to say. No one had ever questioned her love for Sasuke before. What _had_ he ever done for her? Not because she was a teammate, but because he really, actually _cared_ about her? Shame swept over her, and now it was her turn to hang her head, hiding her red face from her friends. "Nothing, really," she reluctantly admitted.

"Hm." Shikamaru sounded disinterested. "I rest my case. Kiba?"

At the sound of Kiba's name, Akamaru's head popped up and his ears perked. "Woof!" The large, white dog bounded across the room and began attacking his owner with love.

"Akamaru!" Kiba complained. "Down, boy! DOWN!"

With a small whine, Akamaru slumped and sadly made his way back to his corner. Letting out a low growl, he curled back up, his back facing towards Kiba.

"So ladies," Kiba said, acting as if nothing had happened. "If Sasuke hasn't done a single thing for you, why do you have feelings for him? Is it just because of his looks?"

Both of the girls peeked up at Kiba through their lashes. "I guess," Ino droned.

"It's not true love if you only like someone for the way they look," Kiba said matter-of-factly. "It's nothing but an infatuation."

At first, Sakura had the urge to jump up and scream "What do YOU know about love?!" at the boy. But then, if all of her feelings for Sasuke had been a lie, then what did _she_ know about love? If she looked at it in a fair perspective, Kiba and Shikamaru were actually making quite a lot of sense.

"Ladies." Now, it was TenTen's turn to speak up. "You two were best friends at one point. But what tore you apart? Your mutual feelings for Sasuke Uchiha. We've just established that he's done nothing for either of you. How are you feeling, Ino?"

Ino sighed. "I guess I feel like an idiot," Ino admitted, resting her elbow on her knee, and cupping her hand around her chin. She looked miserable.

(Sorry, Ino... but you're right about that one!)

TenTen turned to Sakura. "And you, Sakura?"

Sakura frowned. "I mean, I guess the same," Sakura said. "But... he's still my friend and my teammate, and I'm still happy that he came back to us."

"And we all are," TenTen. "This is nothing _against_ Sasuke- we just want you to realize that he hasn't been worth the two of you fighting all the time. Your feelings for him haven't even existed."

The tension between the former friends was beginning to dissipate rather quickly. Sakura shyly turned her head towards Ino, and Ino turned to carefully look at her as well. They made eye contact for a moment, resignation written all over their faces.

"NOW!" TenTen suddenly cried. Every single person in the room jumped to their feet in startlement.

"AH!" they all yelled, and Kiba cried, "TENTEN WHY!"

The brunette girl ignored all of their overly-dramatic reactions. She reached into her back pocket and whipped out two pink cards. "These are for you two!" she exclaimed.

Sakura and Ino both curiously stepped forward. Each of them took a card from TenTen. Looking at it, Sakura could see that it was a shopping giftcard.

However, Ino saw the price on it before Sakura did.

"WHAAAAAT?!" she screeched loudly, throwing the card to the ground as though it were possessed by a demon. "TENTEN! THAT'S- THAT'S-"

"One THOUSAND dollars!" TenTen proudly exclaimed. "Each!"

"EEEEHHH?!" Now, Sakura was screaming, staring at the card in disbelief. "TENTEN YOU WOULDN'T!"

"Oh, yes I would!" TenTen winked and let out an innocent giggle.

"But-how-why-WHERE DID YOU GET ALL THIS MONEY?!" Ino sputtered.

TenTen leaned down and swiftly picked up the card Ino had thrown up in between her index and middle finger. "It doesn't matter," she said nonchalantly. "What matters is that both of you go and have a day together. You're going to go shopping, and this giftcard also covers food."

"You didn't have to tell us that," Sakura said, her pink eyebrow twitching and a vein popping in her forehead.

TenTen ignored her. "I gave you so much money so that you'd have to spend the entire day spending all of it. And yes, I expect you to spend EVERY LAST PENNY."

Sakura and Ino both sweatdropped. It seemed like a daunting task- they could probably buy out several stores in Konoha with this money!

"You'll go tomorrow, and you will NOT leave each other's side for the ENTIRE DAY. All we ask is that you do this, and really get to know each other. Give one another another chance at friendship. And if by the end of the day you just can't get along, then we'll leave you alone. Which leads me to our last rule; there will be absolutely NO MENTION of Sasuke Uchiha."

Sakura glanced over at Ino again. It seemed they didn't have much of a choice.

So, the next day, the two kunoichi met up and began their shopping. At first, it was rather awkward. But it didn't take long until their bond strengthened to what it once was.

Sakura smiled at the memory, cracking an egg into a frying pan. It began to sizzle and pop as she remembered her blossoming friendship with Ino. That was when she had lost her feelings for Sasuke. However, that was also when she found out, as much as she could, what love was. Just as she had begun having feelings for Naruto, he had begun having feelings for Hinata. She was too late.

_Naruto._

"Sakura..."

Sasuke's groaning, sleepy voice sounded from the living room where he was still dozing. Sakura peeked out from the corner, watching as Sasuke snuggled further into the quilt in his restless sleep.

Her eye twitched. _Remember, Sakura. Don't get too hung up on his looks again. Just because he's hot doesn't mean that he's changed his mind about you as a sex slave. I _refuse_ to fall victim to that face again!_

"Grrrr..." Sakura suddenly let out a low growl. Watching Sasuke be so cute actually kind of pissed her off. What right did he have to be in her house, trying to seduce her with his sexiness?! She _had_ to do something!

And so, before Sakura's will of iron broke beneath Sasuke's good looks, she forcibly tugged open a drawer, seized a can opener, and pelted it at Sasuke's head.

It hit him. Hard.

"OUCH!" he cried as it smacked him in the face. Right where his bruise was.

Sakura watched in horror as Sasuke leaped off of the couch, suddenly wide awake with crazed rage in his Sharingan eyes.

"SUSANOO!"

"NO, SASUKE!" Sakura picked up the pan that she was frying an egg in and flung it at his face in a desperate attempt to stop him. He could destroy her humble abode with his Susanoo!

Now it was the egg's turn to whack him in the face. It hit him with a SPLAT, and then fell limply to the floor.

Both of them stared awkwardly at the egg.

Now, Sakura sighed, trying to pretend nothing had happened. "As you can see," she said, placing her free hand on her hip. "I'm making breakfast. Are you hungry?''

Sasuke's eyes darkened again, the Sharingan disappearing. "I am," he said, trying not to sound shaky. I mean, really. What a rude awakening!

Before turning to go into the kitchen, Sakura looked at Sasuke's face. There was a streak of egg yolk on his left cheek. A giggle escaped her before she could stop it.

Sasuke stared at her grimly. "What?"

"You have egg on your face," Sakura said, her tone apologetic. She still wore a tiny smile. "Let me get you a napkin." She went hurriedly into the kitchen. Sasuke heard the sink running, and then his teammate emerged with a wet napkin.

"Hold still," she said. Carefully, she pressed the napkin to his cheek.

"Ah!" Sasuke flinched away from Sakura's touch.

"What is it?!" she said, frowning with annoyance.

"It's cold," Sasuke complained.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Ugh! You're such a child!"

"Why does everyone think I'm a child?" Sasuke whined in an ironically childish way. He folded his arms with a "hmph!"

Despite how stupid the situation was, Sakura found herself unable to contain her giggles again. She laughed, bringing a delicate, pale hand to her smiling lips.

Sasuke watched her. She looked so carefree. So happy. A smile automatically came to his face as he looked at her, looking so perfect like she always did.

As Sasuke was going into his own world of everything Sakura, suddenly...

BANG!

The sound of something hard hitting the window made both of them shift their attention. The two shinobi stared at the window, only to see a dark stone flying through the air and hitting the window with another loud boom.

"Grrr!" Sakura growled.

Sasuke side-glanced at her. A vein was popping furiously in her forehead, and her expression was threateningly furious as she stormed to the window and thrust it open. "NARUTO!" she cried out the open window.

If looks could kill, Naruto would be a dead man from the way Sakura was looking at him. He smiled his dorky smile through the window, not the slightest bit phased by her scary expression. "Hi, Sakura! And Sasuke, you're here to?" Upon seeing Sasuke, Naruto pouted. "If you were going to have a breakfast party why didn't you invite me?" he asked sullenly.

Sakura ignored him. "Naruto, my house is only one story!" Sakura yelled. "Why couldn't you just use the door?! You could have broken my window!"

Naruto chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "I've just always wanted to do that," Naruto said. "I don't dare do it with Hinata- Hiashi would probably kill me!"

In an instant, Sakura's expression went from enraged to surprised at the sound of Hinata's name. "Oh, right," she said, averting her eyes.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow in suspicion. Was it just him, or was Sakura acting funny?

Before he could think too much about it, Naruto turned his attention to Sasuke. "Hey, uh, Sasuke?" he said. "You have something on your face."

Sakura's attention immediately snapped back to the Uchiha. "Oh, Sasuke," she scolded, forcefully grabbing his face and wiping his face with the napkin she was still holding. It was as though she were his mother, the way she was acting.

Which was really awkward, considering how crazy Sasuke was for her.

Naruto sighed. "Anyways," he said, his face breaking out into its signature "Naruto" grin. "Hinata and I were planning a date today, and I wanted to see if you guys wanted to come with!" He winked slyly at his best friend.

Sakura's eye twitched. "A date? Naruto, I'm not going on a date with _him!_" She referred to Sasuke as though he were a large, slimy earthworm.

"Come on, Sakura, he's not _that_ bad!" Naruto said reasonably.

"You know I'm right here, guys." Although he was offended by the way his two friends talked about him, his heart leapt at the idea of a date with Sakura.

"Ugh," Sakura deadpanned, rubbing her right temple with her fingers. "I don't know, Naruto."

"Pretty please? It'll be fun!"

Sakura looked at Naruto for a moment. She didn't want to go- how terrible would it be to have to spend a whole day with him and Hinata, acting all lovey-dovey? She wasn't sure she could take it. She could hardly stand it when she simply passed by the two of them on the street. But Naruto looked like he _really_ wanted this.

"Fine," Sakura said sharply.

"Alright!" Naruto jumped up, punching his fist in the air. "We're gonna have so much fun!"

Sakura gave him a half-smile, but said nothing.

As oblivious as ever, Naruto turned and began to run down the road. "We'll see you in a bit!" he energetically yelled behind him. Both Sakura and Sasuke watched as he disappeared, practically at the speed of light.

Sasuke stepped beside Sakura, who was still staring out the window after him, even though he was no longer in their sight. "He's so immature," she muttered, mostly to herself. All of a sudden, her head snapped up at Sasuke. "Just to be clear," she said, quietly and threateningly jabbing a finger into his chest, "you and I are NOT on a date!"

**Thanks for being patient! I think I know how the next chapter is going to go for the most part, and I think you guys will like it :) So stick with me! Thank you for reading :)**


	6. The Double Date

**Good grief. It took me forever to update this story, and I am SO sorry. I've been really busy- it's almost finals week. Good old finals week... So if this chapter seems at all rushed, I'm sorry about that. But I hope it's not too boring, or too weird ;) Anyways, enjoy!**

Sakura had gone back to her bedroom to change into her clothes and to get ready for the day. So, Sasuke had left her house and started home so that he could get ready as well.

_A date with Sakura?_ He thought as he walked down the street to his house. How could this be happening? It seemed so surreal to him.

Nervously, he gulped. _I've never been on a date before,_ he realized. _I've never even been out with a girl that I like. How am I supposed to act? What do I wear?_

A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead and dripped off of his jaw. Had he ever felt this nervous before? Maybe he was getting somewhere finally. I mean, a date was a good thing, right? So perhaps Sakura would finally come around.

He knew one thing for certain:

He could _not_ mess this up.

Sasuke jabbed his hand nervously through his messy hair. "I need help," he shakily said to himself. In that moment, he wished that Itachi were there- what kind of valuable advice would his older brother be able to give him? Itachi had seemed to know everything- he would have known what to tell Sasuke at a time like this.

Just as he was beginning to mourn the permanent absence of his brother (he did this a lot), Sasuke looked up, only to see Choji walking across the street, munching on his usual bag of potato chips. He looked as happy as ever as he popped chip after chip into his mouth.

_A friend! Thank God!_ Sasuke quickened his pace to catch the larger man before he disappeared. "Choji!" he called.

Hearing the familiar voice, Choji snapped his head around and met eyes with none other than Sasuke Uchiha. "Sasuke?" he said. "Are you talking to me?"

"Yes," Sasuke said, finally by Choji's side. He had to take long strides to keep up with Choji.

Choji blinked at Sasuke. "You're... you're talking to me?"

"Yes, pay attention," Sasuke said with a hint of desperation and annoyance. "Why is that so amazing?"

"I'm pretty sure you've never spoken a word to me in my life," Choji said suspiciously.

Sasuke frowned. "I thought we were friends..." he said, sounding sad.

"Oh, nonono!" Choji quickly said, seeing the Uchiha's puppy dog eyes. "You're right! We're buddies!"

"But, you said we weren't..." Sasuke's entire frame seemed to droop with gloominess.

"I never said that!" Choji said defensively.

Sasuke looked up at his... uhm... friend? "You're really confusing me," he said innocently.

"Ugh, forget it!" Choji suddenly cracked under the pressure Sasuke was putting him under. "What do you want from me, anyways?" he asked snappishly.

"I need help," Sasuke said. He didn't seem to realize that Choji was miffed with him.

"With what?"

"I have a date."

Choji perked up, the annoyance disappearing from his eyes. "A date, you say?" he asked curiously.

"With Sakura," Sasuke confirmed.

"Well, what can I help you out with, buddy?" Choji was suddenly acting very friendly.

"Well," Sasuke started. "I don't know what to wear. Or how to act. Or really anything. Do you have any advice?"

Choji smiled. "Come with me."

**xXx**

"Geez, what's taking Sasuke so long?" Naruto stretched his arms out tiredly.

"Can we just leave without him?" Sakura flatly said. The two of them had been sitting on Sakura's porch for almost a full half hour.

"No!" Naruto insisted. "We can't go unless Sasuke is here!"

"But Hinata's been here, and she's had enough time to go home and get her purse!" Sakura said. "He's taking forever!"

"So? We can't leave without him. Besides, we have to wait for Hinata to get back."

Sakura looked at Naruto. Even when he said her name, his face lit up. _He really does love her, doesn't he?_

Suddenly, Naruto's eyes flicked over to Sakura. "What?" he asked.

Quickly, Sakura looked away. "Nothing," she said, feeling her face grow warm.

Naruto grinned widely and chuckled. "C'mon, Sakura! Do I have something on my face?"

Sakura glanced tentatively up at Naruto again. "No, no, it's not that!" she said.

"It's 'cuz I'm so good looking, isn't it?"

"Naruto, please! Stop being so cocky!" Her expression hardened as she snapped her eyes back to Naruto's face.

Naruto let out a burst of laughter. "I'm joking, Sakura!" He laughed heartily at his joke.

Sakura's expression softened. Then, she began to giggle along with him. Seeing him this happy made her happy. This was something that had become rather rare; the two of them, together, laughing. Without anyone else.

Until suddenly, there was a timid voice "N-Naruto!"

Naruto's attention was instantly redirected to the familiar voice. "Hinata," he said gently. "You're back!"

Hinata smiled and sat beside Naruto. Sakura sat stiffly, watching uncomfortably as their fingers intertwined. She felt a pang in her heart.

However, she didn't have long to feel that pain at that moment. Because suddenly, there was a voice.

"Sakura."

All three of them turned to look at the source of the voice.

And they all sweatdropped at what they saw.

Sasuke stood before them. He was dressed, head to toe, in an overly-fancy tuxedo with a red bowtie. Not only that, but he also had a monocle, which he held to his eye with a silk, white gloved hand. He stood up straight, his eyes fixed on Sakura.

She stared at him in shock.

Before she could say anything, Sasuke made his way towards Sakura and held out his hand for her to take.

Sakura looked at his gloved hand. "What game are you playing, Sasuke?" she asked nervously.

But suddenly, Sasuke had her hand and forcefully pulled her to her feet. He then grabbed her around the waist, swung her around, and dramatically dipped her until her hair nearly brushed against the ground. She felt dizzy "I think you gave me whiplash," she said, her eyes glazed and dizzy.

Sasuke ignored her. His face was inches from hers. "Your eyes are as green as..."

_Ooh! This is actually kind of attractive,_ thought Sakura, her heart beating as she looked into Sasuke's handsome face. _Green as what, I wonder?_

And then, Sasuke finished.

"Pickles."

It was utterly silent. A cricket chirped somewhere in the distance.

"PICKLES?!" Sakura shrieked.

In shock, Sasuke dropped her on the stone ground. She landed with an _oomph!_

"Really, Sasuke? _Pickles?_ Even I know better!" Naruto yelled.

Sasuke stood up straight. "But..." _Choji told me that was sure to get her. What did I say that was so wrong?_ He looked down at Sakura, who was still on the ground, looking pissed. He held out his hand to help her up again, but she shoved it away and stood up on her own.

"Ookay, now that that's over," Naruto said, "let's go!"

**xXx**

It was every bit as terrible as Sakura had imagined it would be.

The first thing they did was go shopping. Naruto had declared that he wanted to find the most beautiful jewelry for Hinata to wear, and so they roamed the stores, searching for the jewelry that screamed "Hinata."

Naruto and Sasuke walked behind the happy couple. The two of them were chattering happily, in their own little world. It was as though they had completely forgotten they had company. At one point, Naruto reached out and put his arm around Hinata's petite shoulders. Sakura watched longingly as he pulled her body close to his and rested his head on top of hers as they walked.

Sasuke was also watching them closely. Perhaps if he copied some of the things that Naruto did, he would be able to impress Sakura. So, slowly, he reached out and wrapped his arm around Sakura, abruptly pulling her into him.

"Get off me!" Sakura snapped, shoving Sasuke away from her. "What's your problem?" Then she sped up her pace, leaving Sasuke to trail behind her like a loyal puppy dog, following a person who doesn't want it.

Sasuke looked ahead at Naruto and Hinata. Hinata seemed to rather like it when Naruto pulled her close to him. Why didn't Sakura like it?

They stopped in front of a small shop. "Hinata, should we go in there?" Naruto asked.

"If you would like to, Naruto," she shyly replied. The two of them smiled at each other, then Naruto stepped ahead of her and held open the door while she walked through.

_Wow, Naruto really can be a gentleman, _Sakura thought as she walked through the open door. "Thank you, Naruto," she said as she walked through, Sasuke trailing close behind.

As they walked in, an old woman sitting behind a counter looked up from her book. "Hello, younguns!" she said. Sakura smiled and nodded at the woman, who went back to reading her book.

Naruto followed his friends, swinging the door shut behind them. "Is there anything here that you want, Hinata? I'll get you anything!" Naruto was now racing up to his girlfriend, who had made her way to the other end of the shop.

Sakura blushed as she watched Hinata look up at Naruto, her eyes wide. "N-no, Naruto!" she frantically said. "I don't want to you spend everything on me!"

"Too bad," Naruto said, smiling widely at her.

_This is the worst,_ Sakura thought. _I have to watch them be all lovey-dovey together, and I'm stuck with... him._ Sakura turned around to look at Sasuke. He looked so awkward- just standing in the middle of the shop in his tux. He clearly didn't know what to do.

Sakura sighed. "Hey, Sasuke," she called. Sasuke's head snapped up. His expression was stony, as usual, but she noticed that his eyes lit up a little when she called his name. "Get over here."

Obediently, Sasuke strode over to her.

Sakura looked away from him and began fishing through a nearby rack of men's ninja clothing. "What size are you, Sasuke?" she asked, not looking up at him.

"What do you mean, 'size'?" Sasuke asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Ugh, nevermind," Sakura groaned. She quickly examined his body, not looking at his face. "You look like you're probably a medium," she said. With that, she pulled out a black shirt, the sleeves cut off, and some matching black pants. "Go into the dressing room and put these on," she said. "If they look good on you, then I'll get them for you." She shoved the clothes at Sasuke.

Sasuke looked down at the clothes in his hands. "But Sakura," he said. "You don't have to-"

"Yes, I do. I can't look at you in that God-forsaken tuxedo. You look like a giant penguin."

Before Sasuke could say anything, Sakura grabbed his hand and began dragging him over to the back of the store. There were several curtains to several dressing areas. As Sakura pulled him behind her, Sasuke's face began to glow pink.

_She's holding my hand she's holding my hand she's holding my hand she's holding-_

And then she let go, stopping in front of one of the already open curtains. She gently pressed her hand to his back, leading him inside. "Show me when you're done," she said, drawing the curtain on him. _Honestly, sometimes I feel like his mother._

"S-Sakura."

Said girl turned to the sound of Hinata's voice, who had just drawn a curtain and stepped out from behind it. She was wearing a dark purple tank-topped dress that gracefully fell to her ankles. "Naruto picked this out for me," she said. "Does it look okay?"

Sakura eyed the dress with an overpowering feeling of jealousy. It looked good, especially on Hinata's hourglass form. "You look like you could be a model," she said. Even though she resented her in a way, Hinata was the kind of person you just couldn't hate or be mad at. "I'm surprised that Naruto has a sense of style."

Hinata giggled. "Thank you," she said. "He sure can surprise you, can't he?"

Sakura smiled. "You really love him, don't you?"

At this, Hinata blushed deeply. "I do," she said, twiddling her fingers.

"I can tell," Sakura said softly. "Just the way you look when you talk about him says it all." She looked away. "He has the same look when he talks about you."

"H-he does?"

Sakura nodded her head and looked at Hinata again. "You sure are lucky," she said. "Naruto's a great guy."

"He is. He's the most amazing person I've ever known." The Hyuuga sighed, a dreamy look in her eyes.

Sakura felt a deep sense of sadness. At least Hinata knew how lucky she was to have Naruto. At least she treated him well.

But still...

"Ah, I'm sorry," Hinata said apologetically. "You probably don't want to listen to me gush like this."

Sakura smirked. "Don't worry about it," she said.

Just then, the curtain covering Sasuke was pushed aside, and the young man stepped before Sakura. "How do I look?" he asked.

And Sakura lost her breath.

The top that he was wearing showed off all of his toned muscles. It made her... well... _hot._

"Oh, Sasuke," Sakura breathed, pressing a hand to her chest. She was swooning so much, she was almost having a hard time standing. "You look so..."

"Y-you look better," Hinata said with a polite bow of her head.

Sasuke inspected himself in a full-length mirror on the wall. He clearly didn't know the effect that he was having on Sakura, because he looked very unsure. "I don't think this is 'date attire,'" he said slowly.

This snapped Sakura out of her trance. "Remember, we're not on a date!" she insisted. "You look great. Now leave that dreaded suit behind and let's buy you this outfit." Before dragging the Uchiha off, Sakura looked around the store. "Hey, where did Naruto go?"

As if on cue, Naruto jumped out from behind another curtain. "What d'ya think, Hinata? Don't I look great?!"

Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata all sweatdropped.

Naruto was wearing an immaculate tuxedo. Just like the one Sasuke had just abandoned.

"D-dear," Hinata said nervously. "Can we talk?"

**xXx**

"I thought I looked great in that tux," Naruto said bitterly. "Then Sasuke and I could match. It would've been cool!"

"I'm sorry," Hinata said, looking rather ashamed.

"Don't be sorry, Hinata," Sakura said. "He looked ridiculous. Maybe if we were going to some royal ball it would have been acceptable, but not here!"

Sasuke took note of this. _Perhaps Choji thought that's what we were doing,_ he pondered. He was silent as he thought about what was going on. He had listened to what Sakura was saying to Hinata while he was behind the curtain.

_You sure are lucky. Naruto's a great guy_, he remembered her saying. Why had her saying that made him feel so... jealous?

Sasuke slowed his pace. His three friends didn't seem to notice that he was falling behind- he watched as Naruto and Hinata took the lead again, Sakura walking behind. Her eyes were on Naruto's back. And they stayed there. What had that look on her face been as she stared at him?

Suddenly, Sakura stopped. She turned around, looking at Sasuke. Seeing her look at him again, his cheeks went pink. "Sasuke," she called out. Slowly, she began to make her way over to Sasuke's side. He had now stopped in the middle of the road. "What are you doing? Why did you stop?"

Sasuke looked at her beautiful face. "Sakura," he said gently. "Do you hate me?"

Sakura stepped back. "Wh-what?" she asked in shock.

Sasuke tore his eyes from Sakura's, looking up at the sky. "I don't blame you," he said. "I had a rough few years. I was always so rude to you."

Sakura looked at Sasuke's profile, unsure of what to say. But, just as she finally opened her mouth...

"Guys! Hurry up! We can't wait for you all day!" Naruto yelled in the distance. Both of them looked ahead, seeing Naruto dramatically waving at them.

"Let's go," Sasuke said. He sped up and began walking quickly towards the couple ahead, leaving Sakura standing alone. Finally, she snapped out of the trance she was in and followed her teammate.

**Sasuke in a tux? Sasuke in a tux. Haha, thanks for reading! Again, sorry for taking so long!**

**And Hanmac- thank you very much for your PM! I actually hadn't thought about that specifically, but I really like that idea. I too like NaruSaku, and I'll check out your story when I get the chance! It sounds really awesome! :D**

**Thanks everyone! Have an awesome day! :)**


	7. Feelings

**I'm back! I hope you readers are still there ;) As you know, if you read my last update, I had a really busy month. But I'm back home now! I'll still be busy, but I'll be able to find time to write :) Thank you for being patient!**

**A few important things before you read:**

** I edited the last chapter like I said I would. If you would like to go back and read it again, then go right ahead! But it won't be a huge deal if you decide not to :)**

**~WARNING~****: This chapter contains a somewhat graphic scene. By this, I mean nudity. I kept it very minimal, as it is rated T and I'm not planning on changing the rating. However, if this isn't your cup of tea, I will let you know in the chapter where to skip :) I'll summarize what happened in my ending author's note.**

**Okay! Enjoy!**

_You're not doing anything wrong- It's all me. I've just been making mistakes for years. And I'm still making mistakes._

_Why didn't I see it all those years ago? Why didn't I see that you were always there for me by my side? I was so blinded by other feelings that I didn't even see that you were the one for me._

_I can still tell you how I feel. There's still time. But you're so happy. So content. I would never want to ruin that for you, so you'll never know my true feelings for you. You must feel like this is the way things are meant to be._

_And maybe they are. I don't deserve you, after all._

_I never will._

**xXx**

Sakura was reading on a bench across from Ichiraku's when she heard a familiar, wonderful voice.

"Man, I'm starving! Time for some ramen!"

Sakura looked up from her book. Naruto was striding confidently towards the tiny ramen shop. He was so excited about the ramen that he didn't even see her.

At the sound and sight of Naruto, Sakura's lips curved into a content smile. _He's such an idiot,_ she thought, her insides melting into a warm pool of affection. Just as Sakura snapped her book shut to run over and join him, she saw Hinata running to catch up to him.

"S-slow down Naruto!" she was panting.

"C'mon, Hinata! We have to eat!" Naruto didn't slow down.

The pinkette froze, halfway standing. Then, she slowly lowered herself back onto her bench, fixing her eyes on Naruto's back. "Hm," she muttered. She watched him as he jumped onto one of the stools and began to devour the hearty bowl of ramen before him. She felt a bit creepy watching him- especially because he was completely oblivious that she was there.

But she watched him anyways. Just a little longer.

**xXx**

It had been nearly a week.

Sakura hadn't spoken to him for nearly an entire week.

Frustratedly, Sasuke sat on the edge of his bed, the sunlight spilling in through the window. He held his head in his hands, grabbing at his hair as he thought.

"What the hell am I doing wrong?" he pondered aloud in his anguish. Everything he did was for Sakura. People were giving him seemingly good advice, and he was doing exactly what they told him to do. He had thought that if he gave her some space, Sakura might approach him. However, she was completely ignoring him.

So _why_ did Sakura _dislike_ him so much?!

WHY?!

Suddenly, Sasuke realized something. He perked up, straightening quickly and staring fixedly and wide-eyed at the wall across from him.

And he uttered one word.

"Panties."

He had forgotten! Rock Lee had given him some solid advice in the art of seducing women. How could he possibly forget?

No _wonder_ he was getting nowhere!

Sasuke stood, filled with a new purpose. He _had_ to get over there, and fast!

**xXx**

"So," Ino said as she poured a cup of tea for her friend. "How is the whole deal with Sasuke going?"

Sakura shuffled uncomfortably on the cushion she sat upon. "Oh, it's going," she droned, picking up her teacup and taking a sip. "HOT!" she suddenly exclaimed, dropping the cup on the table. It tipped over, the contents spilling across the table. Before Sakura noticed, the tea spilled off the edge of the table and into her lap. "EEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAA!" she cried out, jumping to her feet. "Dammit, Ino! Are you trying to set me on fire?!"

"Whoa, hey!" Ino yelled defensively. "Tea is _supposed_ to be hot, bitch! And you spilled it on yourself!" Ino stood up, went towards the sink, and came back to Sakura with a wet rag. "Here!" She handed it to Sakura.

Sakura snatched it from Ino. "I'm sorry," she practically snapped. She didn't sound sorry at all. "I'm just... I'm just..."

"Well, if you don't _want_ to talk about Sasuke we don't have to," Ino interrupted. "All you have to do is tell me. Verbally. Without spilling any hot tea."

Sakura glanced down at the table, where the tea was boiling. Literally. Boiling.

Much to her surprise, Ino took a sip of her tea, without any reaction to the hotness.

"I'm sorry," Sakura said more gently. She took her seat on the cushion again. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"You have a stalker," Ino said with a shrug. "Personally, I would be flattered. But annoyance with the situation is understandable."

"He just won't leave me alone," Sakura said. "And he keeps trying to do these ridiculous, douchy things to get me to like him, but he's just proving to be more and more of a jerk the more he tries. I think he just wants a one night stand, or something, with the way he's acting."

Ino took yet another sip of the burning tea, staring thoughtfully into the distance. "You know, maybe he's like Sai."

Sakura looked up. "What?"

"Sai was really socially awkward for a while after leaving the Foundation. Remember?"

Sakura rolled her jade eyes. "Of course I remember," she replied.

"Sasuke's never been social, if you think about it," Ino continued. "This is his first time ever trying to make friends. AND his first time dealing with romantic feelings. He probably just has no idea how to handle it all."

Sakura frowned, her eyes drifting back to her tea spill. "But he should know better. He's not an idiot."

Ino raised her eyebrow threateningly at Sakura. "Neither is Sai," she said coldly.

Sakura ignored her. "I don't want to give him a chance," she said. "That would just feel like I was losing my dignity. I've made a decision never to be with Sasuke Uchiha, and I will hold to my word. Even if he's changed. I don't want to give him the satisfaction of thinking that he can get any girl he wants, even though he treats them badly. Besides... I can't help but resent him. After everything he's done to me... to Naruto..."

Ino smiled at her friend. "But he's still your friend, right?"

"Well, if he keeps up his behavior, then no. He's not."

"Just be patient with him. Like you said, he's not an idiot. He'll learn eventually." Suddenly, Ino grew serious. "Also, Sai isn't an idiot either! Don't you EVER suggest-"

At this point, Ino slammed the teacup that she was holding onto the wooden table. The concoction splashed onto her lap from the force. Sakura winced in empathy as she watched the tea drip onto her friends bare legs.

"Dammit!" yelled Ino, not phased at all by the scorching mixture in her lap. "Sakura, can you hand me that rag?"

Sakura raised her eyebrow, slowly handing over the wet rag. "How are you not in pain?" she asked slowly.

Ino grabbed the rag and began wiping her skirt. "I like my tea boiling hot," she stated.

**xXx**

There was a romantic sunset in the sky. This would be the PERFECT time of the day to lure Sakura to his home and win her heart over with his seduction skills.

Oh, and did he believe he had some MAD seduction skills.

Pacing nervously from one side of the street to the other (and running into several annoyed passerbys as he did so), Sasuke mentally prepped himself. _Okay. I got this. This is sure to get her attention._ When he had convinced himself that everything would go as perfectly as he planned, he started determinedly down the street.

Before he knew it, he was in front of Sakura's quaint little home. Closing his eyes, he tried to sense her chakra inside.

He felt nothing. The house was empty.

Sasuke took one last, deep breath of reassurance. "Wish me luck, Itachi," he said to the deep pink sky before stealthily walking up to the door.

Fortunately (and unfortunately), Konoha was such a friendly place where everyone was very trusting. So hardly anyone locked their doors. Sakura's door was locked, but Sasuke glanced to the other side of the house, to see that the living room window with Sakura's plants on the sill was wide open.

_What's the point in locking your door and keeping your window open?_ Sasuke wondered as he clambered in through the open window, knocking over a potted plant in the process. He stared down at the broken pot for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. "Eh," he muttered, walking deeper into the house.

Like a creepy stalker, the Uchiha made his way down the hall into Sakura's bedroom.

When he opened the door, he looked around. He had expected everything to be pink and maroon, but it was much more conservative than he had imagined. The walls were a light beige, while the floors were wood-paneled like the rest of the house. Her bed was queen-sized, and while they did have a maroon comfortor, the sheets and pillows were white. On one side of the bed there was a walk-in closet.

And on the other side, there was a wooden dresser.

Sasuke tip-toed across the floor, just in case anyone could hear him (even though he was completely and totally ALONE) towards the dresser. He opened the top drawer, where he suspected his targeted clothing items to be.

Sure enough, there they were, in all their glory. Sakura's panties.

And BRAS!

Sasuke reached into the drawer with shaking hands, and carefully pulled out a red transparent lace bra. He stared at it as though he were staring at something very sacred.

"Wow..." he breathed. This was one of Sakura's bras. He never thought he would ever see them. He felt his face grow hot as he gazed at the very sexy piece of lace in his hands.

Suddenly, he felt a familiar chakra presence nearby.

Sakura.

She was getting closer and closer to her house from the outside- Sasuke could _feel _it!

As quickly as he could, he reached into the drawer, grabbed an armful of suggestive garments, and ran into her walk-in closet. There, he spotted a large, maroon purse, and he proceeded to shove the underwear inside, dropping a few on the ground in the process.

The Uchiha heard the door shut, and Sasuke could sense her presence inside. _Shit shit shit shit shit..._ He thought this word over and over again in his mind. Looking around, he ducked in a corner underneath several hanging dresses, hoping that they would hide him sufficiently in case she came into her closet.

**xXx**

After her tea session with Ino had ended, Sakura made her way back to her house. Unlocking the door, she stepped inside and slipped her shoes off. As she stepped towards the hall, she saw something on the ground out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh no," she said sadly, seeing that it was one of her cute little plants. "I'll have to re-pot that."

And so she did, her mind keeping itself busy all the while. Gloomily, she made her way into her bedroom. _It's going to be an early night for me_, she thought glumly. All she really wanted to do was lay in bed, anyways.

And you know what? Screw pajamas.

**xXx (Here's where you'll want to skip if you have a sensitive soul ;)**

Sasuke sat in anxiety as he heard the door of Sakura's room open and shut. _What'll I do?_ he thought frantically. Carefully and quietly, Sasuke crawled across the floor and barely cracked the closet door open, just enough to see what Sakura was doing.

Then, his jaw dropped.

Sakura's bare feet made their way across the room to the foot of her bed. Then, she began to unzip her red dress.

Sasuke put a hand over his mouth. He felt like he shouldn't be looking, but he couldn't tear his eyes away. Slowly, Sakura pulled the zipper of her dress down, until it reached the bottom and parted completely, revealing her green spandex and pale stomach.

Then, adrenaline rushed through the young man as she shrugged out of her dress, revealing the rest of her torso.

She wasn't wearing a bra.

Her breasts hung off her chest naturally as she leaned down to slip off her spandex shorts, revealing the rest of her body to Sasuke.

Was Sasuke turned on? Yes. Yes he was. She was fit and toned from her training, and her skin was light and fair. But, despite his undeniable feelings of lust, he felt something more- deep admiration and awe. She looked gorgeous as she slipped into her bed with nothing on, covering herself with her sheets.

Sasuke's whole body shook stiffly. He was ashamed of himself for watching her- he felt like he had disrespected her privacy. As he was thinking this, Sakura shifted in her bed to face her closet. Sasuke was about to scramble deeper inside when he noticed that she wasn't looking at him at all.

Sakura was just staring at the wall with a strange expression on her face. Something like sadness. Hurt. Loneliness.

And, even though it was still barely light outside, Sasuke watched as her eyes closed and she fell into a deep, dark sleep.

As soon as Sasuke was sure she was asleep, he slowly opened the closet door and crept back into the room, to the side of her bed. He stared down at her face, which now looked peaceful.

Suddenly, she groaned and shifted onto her back, stretching her arms above her head and resting them there on her pillow. Sasuke froze completely, scared to death that he had been caught. But then she was peaceful and still again.

Gulping, Sasuke's curious and very invasive eyes wandered back to her chest. The blankets had slipped down, revealing her torso again.

[Don't look too much, Sasuke,] the Uchiha told himself, quickly glancing away. [I should cover her, though.]

With that, Sasuke reached, his hand trembling violently, towards the blankets at the base of Sakura's breasts. Careful not to touch them, Sasuke gently pulled the covers up to her collarbone. She didn't wake up.

Still, Sasuke stood there, staring at her face. Impulsively, he reached out with his hand and brushed a stray piece of pink hair off her forehead, and let his hand slide down to her smooth cheek. The sky outside was finally growing dark.

"Goodnight, Sakura," Sasuke whispered. Then, he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, right on top of her blue diamond.

And with that, he left the room.

Then he rushed back, realizing he had forgotten all of her underwear.

Then he REALLY left.

**Okay. So basically, Sasuke just saw Sakura getting undressed. He felt guilty watching her, but he kept at it. Sakura didn't ever notice him, and she crawled into bed and fell asleep. Sasuke kissed her forehead and then left... with her underwear -.-**

**Anyways, Sasuke is kind of an idiot in this story, but he's a sweet idiot ^^ I hope it was somewhat worth the wait- again, I'm sorry about that. Let me know what you think! Thank you very much :)**


	8. The Pond

**Hello? Anyone there?**

**I'm not sure if anyone is still reading, but I would like to apologize for neglecting this story. This happens all the time, it seems, and I am very sorry about it. The reason I neglected it for so long is because I had writer's block until recently. I'm not sure I still know exactly where it's going, but I have an idea, and that's all I need :) I'm not sure it'll be much longer, but let's see where it goes! Thanks for being patient- I had some distractions while I was writing, so I'm sorry if it's sloppy. But enjoy this chapter, and I'll try to get another one up soon!**

Sakura watched from a distance as Kakashi and Naruto sparred together in the vast training field. It almost felt like old times- except instead of Kakashi constantly tricking Naruto and Naruto yelling angry curses at him, they were very evenly matched.

_This feels... nice,_ she thought to herself, smiling as she watched Naruto, a fierce look in his eyes and sweat on his forehead as he dodged another attack. She wondered for a moment if Naruto felt at all intimidated by Kakashi, since he had been their sensei, and all. But that thought was fleeting, as she remembered just how cocky he was about his skills.

She leaned against the tree and took in a deep breath of the fresh air. She felt the breeze on her face. In her hair... and on her ladyparts.

"Ugh," she said, holding her hands against her skirt, paranoid that a gust of wind might reveal everything. It had been a couple days, but ALL of her underwear had gone mysteriously missing. She was kind of used to it by today, but at the same time, she couldn't help but feel extremely self conscious and embarrassed that she was in this predicament. And, unfortunately, she hadn't a dime to spare- it had been a while since she had gone on a mission, and business was slow at the hospital- everyone was in amazing shape since the village was now thriving.

_I could always ask Ino to help me out,_ she thought to herself. But before she could act upon her thought, she heard a timid rustle behind her.

_Oh great,_ Sakura thought, turning reluctantly to face none other than Sasuke. He was looking at her- just, looking, his eyes wide and puppy-like.

Sakura blinked at him, starting to feel a bit uncomfortable at the way he ogled at her. _What is it with him and just... staring?_ she thought to herself.

But then she realized that he wasn't ogling- he looked extremely troubled. Sakura simply cocked her head questioningly at him. At this, Sasuke averted his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. After a few short seconds, he looked straight at Sakura, determination filling his eyes, and drew in a breath as though he was going to say something. But nothing came out of his mouth. His whole head dropped to the ground as he let out a frustrated groan. And with that, he shuffled off to a nearby tree and dropped to the ground, staring worriedly at his feet.

_Well, that was weird,_ Sakura thought, looking at the young man for a moment before shrugging and turning back to watch Naruto. Whatever- she was starting to just accept the fact that Sasuke was just that- weird.

Several minutes passed. As she watched Naruto, however, she kept finding herself glancing over at the boy sitting on the ground a few feet away. Every time she looked at him, he just looked like something terrible was occupying his mind. He just stared ahead, sitting stiffly and looking uncomfortable as he slowly gained Sakura's full attention, unbeknownst to him.

_What on earth is eating at him?_ she wondered. She was starting to feel a little sorry for him- maybe he was sick? Perhaps he needed some medical attention.

Carefully, Sakura nearly tiptoed over to the Uchiha. She noticed that when he heard her approaching, he stiffened even more, if possible.

"Hey, Sasuke," the girl said, slowly crouching down as though she were talking to a young child. "Um... is everything okay?"

Sasuke gulped. "Sakura," he said, still staring straight ahead. "I... I have something to tell you." Sakura would go as far as to say that up close, he looked mortified. What on earth could be so wrong?

"What? What is it Sasuke?" she gently prompted. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to roll her eyes or be worried for him- she'd never seen him like this.

He gulped again, and brought one of his knees up to his chest. Shaking his head, he let out another sigh. "You'll hate me," he said. "I don't know how to say this so that you won't hate me." He sounded afraid.

"Sasuke, you're scaring me," Sakura said, finally getting genuinely nervous. "Please tell me what's wrong! Sasuke!" She shook his shoulder gently.

This caused Sasuke to blurt out the worries of his heart. "I saw a baby duckling stuck in a bush without its mom and I didn't help it! I just left it there!"

Silence. The only sound that could be heard was the whistle of the breeze, but even that fell on deaf ears.

"What?!" Sakura almost snapped. "_That's_ what you're so distraught about? Are you serious."

Sasuke glanced up at Sakura, who was clearly annoyed, and flickered his eyes away. "Yes," he said softly, his face turning a hot shade of red.

"For heaven's sake, you scared me! I was worried that something was wrong! That's an easy fix, Sasuke. Just show me where you found the baby and we can return it to it's mother. Easy as pie." She held out her hand, muttering something about how he could have told her sooner, and, blushing now for other reasons, Sasuke took her soft, smooth hand in his and let her help him to his feet.

**xXx**

Sasuke led the way, Sakura walking closely behind him. He couldn't believe he had said such a thing. He had every intention that day of confessing his wrongs to Sakura, but he just couldn't make himself do it.

Had he seen a stranded baby duckling on the way to the field? Yes, that was not a lie. Did he feel as guilty about leaving it as Sakura seemed to think? Well, he felt pretty guilty, but not nearly as guilty about peeping on Sakura earlier that week. He hadn't meant to- he was simply following a piece of advice from a friend. He hadn't, however, expected Sakura to arrive home while he was there, let alone get undressed COMPLETELY right in front of him.

Not that she had known, of course. But even dense, idiotic Sasuke knew that he was in the wrong.

"Here it is," Sasuke said as they entered a clearing with a large pond and several little plants. The two of them approached a bush, and Sasuke carefully parted the branches. He watched Sakura carefully lean over to peer inside. Sure enough, the tiny duck was still there. He let out a tiny quack, not seeming to notice the two humans looking down at him.

"Oh," Sakura said softly, gently scooping the tiny duckling into her two hands. "Don't worry, little guy. We'll help you find your family."

Sasuke watched in awe as his teammate cuddled the duckling against her chest and looked around searching for a mama and her trail of ducks. It was only a few seconds before her face lit up and she was pointing towards the other side of the clearing. "There they are!" she exclaimed.

Sure enough, when the boy turned around, he saw a white, squat duck waddling through the grass in the distance, six tiny fluff balls trailing behind her. He could hear their faint quacking as they shuffled their way towards the edge of the pond.

"We can't let her see us or she'll snap," Sakura said. "We have to be careful."

"Why will she snap if she sees us?" Sasuke asked, trailing doggedly behind Sakura, who was walking briskly, but quietly.

"She'll think that we're trying to hurt her babies," Sakura patiently explained.

"But... we're not," Sasuke said. "We're helping."

"Well, she doesn't know that," Sakura said shortly.

Clueless as ever, Sasuke continued following the pink-haired girl, and before they knew it, they were at the other side of the pond, where the mother duck was carefully stepping into the water. The ducklings were clumsily dropping into the water, then shaking the droplets off their feathers as they swam behind their mother.

The two ninja snuck silently behind the tiny group. The last duckling was entering the water and swimming quickly behind its siblings.

"Ah! They're leaving!" Sakura watched them, clearly worried about the tiny duck against her chest. Walking down the sloping edge of the pond, Sakura placed the duckling on the grass. It let out two tiny quacks before it finally dropped itself into the water, just like its siblings, and followed after them.

"Yes!" Sakura said happily. "Goodbye, little guy." She turned to walk back up the slope. But instead of actually walking back up the small hill, she slipped on the wet, marshy grass. And, with a startled cry she fell into the dark pond with a loud SPLASH! The ducks all let out fearful quacks and swam away from the commotion with surprising speed.

"Sakura!" Sasuke cried. Tearing his shirt off, he dove into the cold water after Sakura. Sasuke hated getting wet- but he HAD to rescue the love of his life!

So, determined as ever, Sasuke wrapped his arms around her petite body and jumped out of the water, dragging her onto the sloped edge.

Sakura lay there, wet and coughing. Before Sasuke could ask if she was okay, she sat up next to him and looked him straight in the eye "SASUKE!" she yelled. "I can swim, y'know! You don't have to rescue-" she stopped very suddenly.

Because she had just noticed that Sasuke had no shirt on.

Sasuke didn't know this, however. "What?" he asked as she stared at his chest, her mouth gaping open.

When he spoke, she turned a deep shade of red. "Oh or heaven's sake," she said, turning her burning face away from him with disapproval. "You just had to take your shirt off, didn't you?"

Now, it was Sasuke's turn to gape. _Dammit!_ he thought to himself. _Why do I keep doing things that upset her? What's wrong with me? I better fix this right now_. "I-I'm sorry, Sakura," he said quickly, feeling the grass behind him for his abandoned shirt. "I won't ever take my shirt off again if it upsets you."

"God, Sasuke!" Sakura suddenly said, turning towards him with an even redder face, if that were possible. "It doesn't matter what I think!"

Now, Sasuke felt his own face growing warm. "Yes, it does," he said, looking down with embarrassment. He could feel Sakura's eyes on him, but he was too nervous to look at her.

Until he heard a small giggle.

He whipped his head up to look at Sakura. Her cheeks were still rosy, but she was laughing. Shaking her head still, but laughing.

Sasuke felt a small smile pull at his lips. "What?" he asked again.

"Look, don't take this the wrong way, Sasuke," Sakura said, still giggling, "but I would have never even imagined that you were such a big dork." With that, she began laughing even harder.

Sasuke felt as though she had stabbed him in the gut. What an insult! Especially from the woman of his dreams! He couldn't believe she had said such a thing to him. She was still laughing, but Sasuke could feel his heart sinking.

"Oh come on!" she said, lightly knocking him on the head. "Don't give me that look. I just told you not to take that the wrong way, didn't I?"

Sasuke looked at her. "But... isn't the word 'dork' supposed to be an insult?" he asked. "I called Naruto a dork and a loser all the time when I hated him."

"Sasuke," Sakura said with a small smile. "'Dork' isn't always a bad thing," she said. "I didn't mean to insult you. I... I like dorky Sasuke."

Now, Sasuke felt something different- a deep, slow throbbing in his chest. He could hear it in his ears, feel it all over his body as he stared into Sakura's jade green eyes. He hardly noticed her smile slowly fading, and that she had started looking at him the way he was looking at her.

Instinctively, Sasuke scooted closer towards her. She didn't stop him when he slowly began to lean in, gently stroking her cheek with his fingers. Being this close to her felt so natural. So _right. _She still wasn't stopping him when he leaned closer, his eyes closing...

"SAKURA! SASUKE!" a familiar voice suddenly called out.

The pinkette let out a startled gasp and leapt to her feet, out of Sasuke's reach. She was looking into the pond, a shocked, almost horrified expression on her face.

"Sakura," Sasuke muttered, his heart sinking at seeing her expression.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. "Give it up, Sasuke," she said coldly. Straightening up and clearing her throat, she simply said "Naruto's calling us," then turned her back to him and began walking away without him.

**xXx**

"Why are you guys so wet?" Naruto asked, squinting at his two dripping teammates.

"We fell into the pond," Sakura said, feeling embarrassed.

Kakashi stood off to the side, blushing and chuckling at his pornographic novel. "Ah," he said, shutting the book with one hand. "Tsunade has summoned us all to her office. We shouldn't keep her waiting." Their sensei clapped Naruto on the back, smiling behind his mask. "I remember when I first trained with you as a gennin. You've come quite a long way."

Naruto gave Kakashi one of his cheesy grins. "Thanks sensei! I'd say I'm better than you now!"

"I wouldn't say that," Kakashi said, starting towards the village. His three students followed behind him.

"Yeah right! You just don't want to admit it!" The Jinchuuriki ran to catch up with his teacher.

Kakashi hardly said anything, but Naruto argued and yelled at him all the way to the Hokage's office, saying something about how he was young and fast, but Kakashi was becoming an old geezer.

Usually, Sakura would have screamed at him to shut up, but she didn't have the energy. Besides. how could he ever love her if all she ever did was scold and yell at him? And why was she thinking this? Did it matter now, since he was so taken by Hinata? It hurt so much to think that he used to feel that way about herself- she had completely missed her chance. Several chances.

And Sasuke had tried to kiss her. Again.

_When will he give it up? _She wondered. She could feel Sasuke's eyes, boring into her back, and willed herself not to look. _He's so damn pushy. When will he realize that I'll never be with him? Not even if..._ the next thought sent her heart crashing to her feet. _Not even if Naruto marries Hinata._

She shook her head. _Stop this. Stop. Stop. Stop._ She tried to force the thought out of her head, but she couldn't. It was torture, thinking of Naruto being permanently taken from her. And if felt even worse, knowing that Sasuke wasn't giving up on her any time soon.

**Thanks so much for reading! Have an awesome day :)**


	9. The Mission

**Hey guys! Thanks for sticking around! I was really glad when I uploaded the last chapter and people were still interested :) thank you so much! Also, I'm sorry that this one has taken so long to upload. I am very busy, and I don't have a lot of free time, but I can promise you that this story will be finished. Just be patient with me ;) Alright, here ya go!**

"What is it that you want, Granny Tsunade?" Naruto asked casually, scratching the side of his head curiously.

Tsunade, who had been looking out the large window behind her desk, whipped angrily around. "Naruto!" she scolded. "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?"

Sakura sweatdropped. How on earth had she fallen for this idiot?

"Ahem," Tsunade cleared her throat. "I have a mission for you."

Suddenly, Naruto perked up. "A mission? Yes! I haven't been on a mission in ages! What is it, Granny? Are we saving a princess? A town in devastation? Will we be fighting off a group of S-Ranked criminals?" He crouched and punched the empty air. "Ya! Tell us, Granny! We're ready for anything!"

Tsunade closed her eyes and shook her head. "Well, then I have some good news, and some news that you may consider not so good." Before anyone could ask anything, she snapped at Shizune, who had been standing quietly off to the side, holding a small scroll. She handed the scroll to the Hokage, who in turn handed it to Naruto across her desk. "Your job is to deliver this scroll to the Kazekage. This is very confidential and important information, and you will not, under ANY circumstances, open this message. Do you understand?" She eyed each of them carefully as they nodded.

Naruto just looked at the scroll in his hand, then back at the Hokage. "Hang on... that's _it?_" he asked, astounded. "That's too easy! A group of genin can do this!" He folded his arms and frowned like a young child throwing a fit.

"I have my reasons," Tsunade said patiently. "That, for you, is the bad news. The good news, however, is that I want you to lead the mission, Naruto."

Instantly, the young man perked up. "Say what?!" he asked in surprise.

"You heard me," Tsunade said with a small smile. "You are the leader of this mission."

"All RIGHT!" Naruto pumped his fist and jumped in the air. "I can't believe this! I'm so excited!"

"Listen up, Naruto!" Tsunade was smiling, but raised her voice so that Naruto would pay attention. "Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi will be going with you. But you will have a few others going with you as well."

As if on queue, the door behind them opened, and in walked Ino, Kiba, Shino, Sai, and Hinata.

Sakura felt a surge of disappointment shoot through her when she saw Hinata and tore her eyes away from the Hyuuga.

"Hinata!" Naruto said, his face lighting up as she entered the room. She blushed and shyly smiled. "Wait a second... why are there so many of us to deliver this message? What's going on, Granny?"

"Less questions, Naruto. Again, I have my reasons for everything. Now, everyone, there is a group of bandits on the road. It's very likely that you may run into them while you're traveling. Please be careful, and work together. Do NOT let them get their hands on that scroll. You hear me? I cannot stress that enough!"

"What'll happen if they get if from us?" Naruto asked, cluelessly cocking his head with curiousity.

"You'll all be dead to me, that's what'll happen!" Tsunade said sternly! "Naruto, you're better than that! All of you are! You will not doubt yourself, and you will complete this mission with success. Got it?"

"Yes sir!" the group shouted in unison.

"Good," Tsunade said. "Now off with you. Get your things packed and leave as soon as possible."

**xXx**

Sakura was the first one at the gate, shortly followed by Ino and Sai.

"Dammit," Ino said as she approached Sakura. "I can't believe we have to go on this mission."

Sakura smiled. "Yeah," she muttered.

"I mean, I'm excited to go on a mission with the two of you," Ino continued, referring to her best friend and husband, "but Naruto? and _Hinata?_ That's just cruel! Why would Lady Tsunade assign you on this mission too?"

"What are you guys talking about?" Sai asked.

"Sai!" Ino suddenly snapped, startling the young man. "This isn't a conversation you should be listening into! I love you, but this is girl talk!"

Sai frowned. "What is with all this 'girl talk?'" he asked sullenly as he crossed to the other side of the gate.

"I love you," Ino called. Sai ignored her. "Man, being married is great, but sometimes..." she murmured to Sakura, trailing off and shaking her head.

"Ino," Sakura said. "You can't be mean to either of them."

"Aw, c'mon! Why not? They're making you suffer!"

"Well, they don't know that!" Sakura said. "You need to mind your own business, and they can mind theirs. Understand?"

Ino grumbled, but Sakura was staring her straight in the eyes, unwavering. "I can't promise anything, but I'll try to be nice."

"That's good enough, coming from you. Thanks." Sakura gave her friend a smile.

Ino smirked. "Okay," she began, grabbing the small backpack from her back and slinging it around to her front. She began fishing through it. "I've packed some extra panties and spandex for you. Everything should be good to go! Also, have you considered the possibility that Sasuke, the perv," she said with disgust, "took all your undies?"

Sakura frowned. "Look, Sasuke is a creep, but I think he's more clueless than anything. I don't think he'd do something like that." Sakura quickly stopped talking, because she had just caught a glimpse of Sasuke, walking towards them down the cobblestone street.

Following Sakura's eyes, Ino looked over her shoulder. Upon seeing the Uchiha, she let out a scoff. "Speak of the devil, and he'll appear," she muttered to her friend.

It didn't take long for Sasuke to approach the two girls. He looked nervous. "Hi, Ino," he said, slowly reaching up and patting her on the head.

Ino moved quickly away, as though Sasuke had struck her. "Um, okay," she said angrily, smoothing her ponytail. "Weirdo."

"I-Ino, please," Sakura said nervously, feeling herself blush. She was a little embarrassed to be with Sasuke again, especially after what had happened at the pond earlier.

Sai took notice of Ino's discomfort and was by her side in a split second. "What's wrong, Ino?" he said, his voice full of concern.

"Nothing!" Sakura quickly said. "_Right, Ino?_" she said, raising her eyebrows at her friend.

Ino was quiet for a moment. "Yeah, everything's good," she finally said with a shrug. "Whatever. Let's go over here, Sai." The two of them walked to the other side of the gate, leaving Sakura and Sasuke together.

Sakura looked down at her feet and kicked at a pebble. _This is so awkward..._ she thought. She snuck a glance up at Sasuke. He was looking across the street at Ino and Sai, and Sakura suddenly wished she could read his mind. What was he thinking right now? Did he feel weird, standing next to her like this? Did he even know what it felt like to be uncomfortable with a person? Growing up with him, he was the type of person who had absolutely no shame whatsoever. But what was he like now?

Suddenly, Sasuke looked down at her, and she realized she'd been staring at him. Drawing in a sharp breath, she whipped her head back down, hiding her face with her hair.

"So..." the deep voice beside her said. She wished she could crawl into a hole and die. "What's it like having pink hair?"

"... What?" Sakura asked, puzzled at the strange question. She looked quizzically up at Sasuke.

Now, it was his turn to blush. "Um... i-it's just that... you don't see a lot of people with pink hair, I guess," he said, scratching the back of his head and looking away.

Sakura shook her head. "I mean... it's... normal?" she said, unsure of how to answer his question.

"Oh," he said.

And that was the end of their conversation.

They stood side by side in complete silence as their teammates showed up one by one, Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi trailing by last.

"You can't keep being late, Kakashi!" Naruto yelled at his sensei, who just smiled behind his mask.

"I'm sorry, Naruto," he said. "I simply forgot where I'd put my mission mask. You came right as I had found it and put it on."

Naruto stopped dead in his tracks. "So... were you not wearing a mask when you were at home? Before we got there?"

"Yes, that's correct," Kakashi said.

Naruto gaped. "If I could have gotten there earlier..." he said in shock.

"What's that?" Kakashi asked.

"Uh, nothing! Nothing! Great, looks like everyone is here!" Naruto grinned at his team. "Man, I'm so excited! Alright everyone, let's go!" With that, Naruto walked ahead of the group, Hinata close behind him. "Follow me!"

**Not the most exciting chapter, but it is important. One Piece Nation, I have to say, that would have been a pretty funny idea XD I wonder if I can somehow work something like that in? We'll see :)**

**Thanks for reading! Please review :)**


	10. Finally, A Mission!

**Hey guys! Long time no see. I really have to apologize for the long wait, yet again. I have been incredibly busy, and writing has been my very last priority, unfortunately. Please don't worry too much, though, because my promise to finish still stands :) I hope this chapter is okay. Again, it is a little rushed, but please enjoy it! Thank you for waiting :)**

This was Sasuke's first mission in a while. He was excited, especially because all of his closest friends were there with him. Strangely, though, he had never felt more out of place. Everyone seemed to be paired off with a friend, and he was left to walk on his own behind the group.

Naruto was leading the mission, walking in front of everyone, with Hinata at his side. He was chatting excitedly to her, and she was smiling, giggling, and nodding her head. To his surprise, she was talking almost as much as Naruto- he had never seen her lips moving so much, or a brighter smile on her face. Even more surprising? Whenever she talked, Naruto stopped to listen, gently smiling down at her. Sometimes, he laughed heartily at what she said, although Sasuke couldn't hear anything.

_Is this what love looks like? _Sasuke wondered. Curiously, he glanced at Sakura, who he had kept close behind this whole time. Should he try to make her laugh? He couldn't see her face very well, but she was walking briskly, her eyes fixed straight ahead.

_Talk to her. Just be yourself._ Sasuke perked up at the sudden thought. It was as though someone were speaking to him, giving him advice. Itachi popped into his head. Would that have been something his older brother would have told him?

Something very strange told him he was right. Itachi would have given him that sort of advice. Hell, maybe it _was_ Itachi.

Sasuke shook his head. _Don't be ridiculous,_ he thought. Itachi was gone. So, without thinking of it any further, Sasuke sped up slightly, trying to get next to Sakura.

"S-Sakura," he said shyly as he approached her. She looked up at him, and he noticed a fleeting expression of annoyance on her face. He gulped. _What should I say? _he asked himself. "I... was wondering if you remembered back when we were still in the academy?" he said, saying the first thing that came to his mind.

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Sure I do, Sasuke. Why?" she asked.

"I... just wanted to tell you... I really liked your hair when it was tied up with that red ribbon," he said. "It looked nice. It still looks nice, even without the ribbon!" he added quickly, feeling himself blush. _Why am I so awkward?_

Sakura's mouth gaped, and she blushed. "Oh, thank you, Sasuke. That's very nice of you," she said, casting her eyes down.

But Sasuke noticed a small smile tugging the corner of her lip.

He smiled and continued. "I've been thinking about growing my hair out, like Itachi's. Maybe I should get a red ribbon like yours."

This caused Sakura to giggle. Sasuke smiled even wider.

And then, suddenly, Sakura let out a genuine burst of laughter. She covered her grinning mouth with her fingers, overtaken by her fit of giggles. This caused Sasuke to let out a small laugh of his own. But her laugh was contagious, and soon the two were behind the group, walking and laughing together.

"Sasuke," Sakura suddenly breathed, looking up at him with green eyes, dewey from laughing so hard. "Why do you keep talking about my hair?"

Sasuke sighed, still grinning from ear to ear. "I don't know," he said. "I guess... it's just so pretty that I can't look away sometimes."

Sakura's eyes widened. "I, uh...!" Sasuke said quickly. "Was that weird? I'm sorry. I still don't really get it." He looked away, scratching at his head.

"It was a little weird," Sakura said beside him, "but it was sweet."

Sasuke stopped walking. So did Sakura. He looked down at her. She was looking up at him, her face unreadable. Maybe she didn't even know how she felt right then.

Sasuke clenched his artificial hand into a fist. Then, he reached over and took Sakura's delicate fingertips into his, stroking the back of her smooth hand with his bandaged thumb. He felt like his heart should have been beating a thousand miles an hour, but it was slow, steady. He could intensely feel every throb as it pounded gently against his chest. This felt... _amazing_.

And Sakura wasn't trying to stop him. As he looked down at her, she looked up at him, not tearing her gaze away. He still couldn't tell what she was thinking, but she didn't look angry. "Sasuke," she said. He was surprised at her voice. She opened her lips to say more...

"SAKURA!"

Both of them looked up, and finally, Sakura tore her hand from Sasuke's, leaving it with a strange, empty feeling.

Ino was running towards her friend. The group had gotten surprisingly far from the two of them, but it wasn't long before Ino, herself, grabbed Sakura's hand. "You're lagging! Let's catch up." Before the two of them ran off, Ino shot a look at Sasuke. And if looks could kill, Sasuke definitely would have died right on the spot.

Sakura ran off with her friend without looking back at Sasuke. Watching her go, Sasuke couldn't help but smile. He couldn't even remember the last time he had laughed like that with someone.

It may have been the happiest he'd ever been.

**xXx**

When they were a decent distance from Sasuke, Ino slowed abruptly to a walk and turned her fierce gaze at Sakura. "What the _hell_ were you doing back there?!" she scolded. "You're letting him get the better of you, Sakura. Don't let that happen again."

"Ino," Sakura said, unsure of what to say.

Ino continued. "You cannot get swept away in his beautiful face, or his muscular body. Remember HIS HAIR. We decided it's ridiculous, remember?!"

"I know," Sakura said. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm thinking anymore," she said. "I don't think I have feelings for him. It's just..." she trailed off. What were her feelings? There was no doubt inside of her that her heart belonged to Naruto. But still...

"Look, I know exactly what's going on," Ino said. "You're rebounding."

Sakura perked up. "What?"

"Rebounding," Ino said, matter-of-factly. "Look, don't forget it, but I once had feelings for Sasuke, too. And when I realized that you were my friend and not my enemy, guess what? _I _rebounded."

Sakura blinked. "What is rebounding?" she asked.

"Oh, Sakura. My sweet, naiive friend," Ino said, squeezing Sakura's hand. "When a relationship doesn't work out and your heart is left broken, it's quite normal to flirt with other men that you may not know so well. Maybe even have a one night stand."

Sakura wrinkled her nose. "You had a one night stand? How did I never know about this?"

Ino laughed loudly. "Here's the story. I found this guy, and we had sex. I didn't think anything would come of it, but then he started doing cute, romantic things, like showing up at my door with a rose, or throwing rocks at my window late at night. Eventually, I couldn't resist any more."

Sakura's eyes widened. "I know this story!" she said. "Sai. He kept persisting until you agreed to go on a date with him."

Ino smiled and nodded, her eyes fixed on her husband's back ahead of them. Suddenly, she grew serious and looked straight into Sakura's eyes. "Look," Ino said. "My story is weird. Almost one hundred percent of the time, rebounds don't end in marriage. But it's possible to develop feelings." She motioned to Sasuke with her head. "If you're not careful with that one, you'll fall in love with him again. You've loved him before, haven't you? How much easier will it be to fall for him than for someone else?"

Sakura pursed her lips and looked at the ground. Ino continued. "He's going to hurt you, Sakura. He may seem better, but people don't change that easily. He's broken. It's okay to be his friend, but I won't let you be his lover. He won't take good care of you, and I will not see my best friend be mistreated. You deserve better than him. Never forget that."

Sakura nodded her head, but said nothing else.

**xXx**

"Alright, let's set up camp!" Naruto suddenly yelled. The group made their way into the forest. Sakura could hear the sound of water rushing in the distance.

Sai and Ino went to pitch their tent somewhere, and Sakura walked as far as possible away from them. You never know with newlyweds...

Kiba's tent was somehow already pitched, and was sitting on the ground, throwing a stick for Akamaru to fetch. "Atta boy!" he said jovially as the dog returned the stick. Kiba threw it again.

Sakura smiled as she watched her friends. Sure, it was strange that such a large group was sent, but it was also a lot of fun to be around so many of her teammates. She reached into her backpack to retrieve her tent...

... only to find it missing.

"Oh, shit!" she hissed, madly digging her hand around the seemingly empty bag. "Where is it?!"

"What's wrong, Sakura?" Naruto asked, surprising her by suddenly being beside her.

She jumped. "Uh, I left my tent," she said sheepishly.

Suddenly, Ino was there too. "I can make Sai sleep outside! We can have a sleepover," she suggested.

Sakura laughed. "That's okay," she said. I'll sleep outside. It serves me right, I guess. Plus, it might be nice to fall asleep under the stars."

"You can use my tent!"

All three of them whipped their heads around, only to see Sasuke, blushing and looking down at the ground. "I don't mind," he added.

Sakura just opened her mouth to protest when Naruto suddenly piped up. "Great! You're the best, Sasuke. Looks like everything is settled!" and with that, he hurried off towards Hinata.

Sakura cringed as she watched him. She noticed that the two of them were setting up one tent. Together. Were they really already to that stage in their relationship?

Sakura felt a sudden presence behind her. "No, Sasuke. I'm not going to sleep in your tent."

"I really don't mind," he said again, his voice its usual monotone.

"That's the thing," Sakura said, turning almost harshly towards the tall young man. "I _do_ mind. I don't want to..." She trailed off, suddenly embarrassed of what she was about to say.

"What? You don't want to what?" Sasuke asked, completely clueless.

"I, um... I don't want to sleep in the same tent as you," she forced herself to say. She hung her head, unable to look at Sasuke anymore.

"Then I'll sleep outside," Sasuke said, totally unembarrassed. "It gets cold at night. I wouldn't be able to sleep if I knew you were outside, freezing to death."

Sakura shyly looked up at him. He said everything so matter-of-factly that it surprised her. Then again, she forgot that the "new Sasuke" was much less cool and moody than his old self. It was strange to hear him say such things. It was strange, especially, that he openly cared about her.

Sakura sighed. "Fine," she said with a frown. "Just don't try anything, got it?"

Sasuke cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"I... I don't think I could sleep either if I knew you were freezing outside," she said, covering her lips with her fingers. "You don't have to completely give it up. We can share."

Sasuke looked a bit surprised when she said this. His cheeks turned a light shade of pink, causing Sakura to blush. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I guess," she said, then quickly added, "I mean, only if it's not weird to you, or anything! I'll stay far away from you, if you'll stay far away from me! If you get too close, you'll... you'll... you'll wish you were dead!"

The silence that hung between them was thick and noticeable. "Okay, cool," Sasuke finally said, expressionless as he turned and walked over to where he had left his things. Sakura hesitated, but followed after him.

**Thank you for reading! Leave me a review, if you'd like! I'll try to get the next chapter up a little sooner. Again, thanks for your patience :)**


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